Croft, Drake, and the Jewel of Power
by stev71
Summary: Seasoned explorer Lara Croft teams up with famed adventurer Nathan Drake in this adventure to continue Indiana Jones' quest for the Jewel of Power, a legendary object guarded by the vengeful god Mara. Can Nathan and Lara find the Jewel and uncover its secrets? This story is based on the "Indiana Jones Adventure" ride at Disneyland.
1. Chapter 1

Nathan Drake stepped out of the small boat that brought us to our destination: The Lost River Delta, an isolated piece of land located deep within the jungles of India. He held out his hand and offered it to me as I stepped out of the boat.

"If I may be so kind, Miss Croft," he said. Instead, I merely slapped it for a high-five, then hopped out with ease. "I don't know why I bother," he mumbled, looking confusedly at his hand.

I offered a soft chuckle, raising my eyebrow as I passed him. "Thanks for your chivalry, Nathan, but I really won't be needing it."

I turned around and saluted the skipper, smiling. He nodded and waved, then turned back around to the helm of the boat and began to sail away. I watched the boat as it left, my eye catching its name: "Amazon Belle."

"Thank god that's over," I said when the skipper was out of earshot. "I don't think I could stand another second of those damn jungle puns."

"Come on, Lara," he said. "Everybody _loves_ the backside of water, right?" He crossed his arms and smiled.

"Oh yes," I said, fake-enthusiastically. "Who could ever forget the 'Eighth Wonder of the World'?"

I turned around and eyed the entrance of the temple standing before us. It wasn't very large—probably only about two stories tall. Its design was similar to that of a pyramid, but at its peak was a small, round adornment similar to a dome. I began to walk toward the entrance, and Nathan followed close behind.

"So that's it? The legendary 'Temple of the Forbidden Eye'?" Nathan called from behind me.

"That's it," I responded over my shoulder, continuing forward with haste.

"…Not as big as I was expecting, to be honest."

"Size doesn't matter. It's small, yet effective."

"Words no man ever wants to hear," he said, suppressing laughter.

I ignored his immaturity, continuing to speak over my shoulder as I pressed forward. "Jones' record insists that the inside is unfathomably huge, with never-ending caverns and a seemingly-infinite labyrinth of tunnels." I stopped and sighed, admiring the craftsmanship of the architecture. "Beautiful. A true Bengalese temple... Amazing it's still in such good condition after all these years, isn't it?"

"Definitely," Nathan said. "It's incredible. But Jones never found what he was looking for, did he?"

"Depends who you ask. If by 'what he was looking for' you mean the Jewel, then no. He failed in that regard. He did, however manage to find the bloody tourists that got themselves lost in the damn place."

"Why did it have to be tourists…" Nathan muttered. "So… the jewel's still in there somewhere."

"Possibly… hopefully." I looked around at all that Jones and his group left behind 80 years ago.

One of the remnants was an old Mercedes truck. Across its doors read "Lost Delta Archaeological Expedition." I ran my fingers across the wording as I walked by, then peeked inside the window to see if there were any goodies remaining; it seemed to have been picked clean.

As we approached the entrance to the temple, we passed several columns that had stone snake relief sculptures engraved in them, with overgrown plants spewing out from the tops. I stopped at the foot of the stairs, looking down carefully at the steps. Two stone king cobra statues guarded the entrance on either side, seeming to attempt to dissuade us from entering. I glanced to my right, noticing that a rope bridge was constructed, for some reason, so that visitors could access the entrance without using the stairs. I guessed the stairs must have been booby trapped at one point in time. I doubt it would have still been operational, but I didn't want to risk it. I took a running jump, grabbing on to the side of the rope bridge as I landed, and hoisted myself over the side. I treaded carefully along the wooden planks until I reached the stone platform at the entryway.

"You're some kind of monkey, aren't you?" Nathan called from below.

"Gymnastics lessons certainly paid off," I smiled. "If you don't think you're up to the challenge, you could always try the stairs."

Nathan looked at the stairs for a few seconds, then down at his feet. He bent down, picked up a rock, and tossed it gently on the first step of the stairs. Nothing.

"Ha," he said mockingly. "Stairs it is."

Just as he was about to place his foot on the first step, it collapsed. Then the second step. Then the third, and the fourth. Then the rest of the steps gave way until there was nothing but a giant hole. I leaned over slightly to see what was left of the stairs, but all I could see was a gaping, pitch-black, endless hole. I let out a small laugh and pointed at the hole.

"Oh, I just think the stairs are a lovely idea. Don't you, Nathan?" I said snidely, placing my hands on my hips and tilting my head a bit.

Nathan rolled his eyes and hopped onto the rope bridge, clumsily rolling himself across the top. He landed on his feet, albeit with a thud, and placed his hands on his knees.

"Brilliantly done," I said. "What do you say we stop 'monkeying' around and get in there already?" I quickly approached the doorway and pulled out one of my blue glow sticks. I cracked it, and its light illuminated the darkened space.

"Ha ha," Nathan said sarcastically. "Very punny. I thought puns annoyed—…whoa."

"What?" I said said, cranking my head around to see what had cut Nathan's comment short. I clipped the glow stick to the belt loop of my shorts and slowly went over to Nathan, where he was looking intensely at an old stone tablet. It had letters carved into its surface that were foreign to me, but I recognized their distinct shapes.

"Marabic!" I said softly. "Or, so Dr. Ravenwood called it. It's that language he was talking about—the one the worshippers of Mara used to tell others of the god's power."

"Hmm… it must be some sort of warning." Nathan said. "Hey, try that little decoder doohickey Ravenwood gave you."

I nodded and pulled out the card from my backpack, then studied the tablet to match the letters and translate the message.

"Let's see…" I murmured. "It says: 'If you dare to look… into the eye of Mara… you shall be… Incinerated'?" I glanced up from the card, scanning the environment for more of these letters. "Oh, look, there's one up there, too—just above the doorway." I pointed to the message, and looked down at the card again to translate the characters. "'Beware… the Eye of Mara,' it says." I scoffed, folding the card and slipping it into my front shorts pocked for easy access. "This one's short and sweet."

"They're pretty serious about this whole 'don't look into the eyes' thing, aren't they?" Nate said with a chuckle.

"Well, you know ancient civilizations can be." I said. "Best to not look into any depictions of Mara with her eyes open… just for good measure."

"You don't have to worry about that. I'm spoken for." Nathan laughed. "You really don't think I have enough self-control to keep my eyes off of a 2,000-year-old woman?"

"Right, I suppose we don't have to worry about any deities throwing us into the incinerator," I said. "We've just got the get to the Jewel before Trinity can get their hands on it."

Of course, I'd had my share of encounters with deities and mystical beings. I was aware that anything was possible, but I wasn't so sure about this one. There wasn't much information on Mara or this temple in any of the texts I read. The only word I had to go off of was Dr. Jones' first-hand "experience" after he attempted to rescue several tourists that got lost in the temple. Jones claimed he had come face to face with Mara, and that he narrowly managed to escaped her wrath. He had intended the find the mystical 'Jewel of Power,' while locating the missing tourists, but he failed in that regard. The Jewel, said to be a piece of a star that Mara brought down from the heavens, was believed the be the source of the temple's power. If such an artifact had the power to grant everlasting life, untold riches, and visions of the future, I had to find out for myself it was real.

"Obviously this culture—this people believed very strongly in the whole 'Mara' thing, huh?" Nathan said softly. "And Jones did, too."

"I'm not so sure if Mara exists, but I'm not counting anything out—not after what I've seen recently. Even if these inscriptions and stories are based off of a simple legend, I've found there's always some truth behind myths. And if Dr. Jones believed the Jewel was here, then I've got no reason to doubt him."

"I don't doubt you on the whole 'truth behind myth' thing. I've seen some shit that I never would have thought in a million years existed. Let's make 'ole Henry proud, shall we?" Nathan crossed his arms and looked at me, grinning slightly.

"Right," I said confidently. "Let's go."


	2. Chapter 2

_Three weeks earlier._

I hurried down the steps in front of the British Museum, having just finished work for the evening. A sky full of black clouds threatened to pour, so I zipped my black leather jacket tight and pulled the hood up over my head, holding my arms close to my body to keep warm.

I reached my motorbike and pulled my helmet out of my bag. I swung one leg over the seat and kicked the engine on.

"Lara!" a voice called. It was hard to hear over the roar of my bike, but it sounded like someone I knew. "Lara, hold on!"

I pulled my helmet off and shook my head to get my fringe out of my face. I placed it in my lap and turned in the direction the voice was coming from.

"Oh, it's you, Dr. Ravenwood," I said with a smile. Suddenly, large drops of rain began to fall. I held my palms up and looked toward the sky—a devilish storm was coming. "What are you doing out here? You'd better get back indoors before this rain turns into downpour."

"Yes, but only if you join me, Miss Croft!" he waved for me to come with him. "It's urgent. Please, come back inside for a moment. Let's talk over tea."

I wrinkled my forehead, concerned, yet intrigued. "O-okay. Sure, Doctor."

I followed Dr. Ravenwood into his office, and, once inside, relished in the warmth that the fireplace brought to the room. A chill rolled down my back, caused by the sudden bout of heat—it felt amazing after being outside in the misty London cold. I unzipped my jacket and slung it over my arm.

"Oh," Dr. Ravenwood said, rushing over to me. "Let me take care of that for you." He held his hands out, offering to take my jacket for me. I obliged, and he smiled as he took it to hang up on the coatrack.

"Thank you," I said breathily, catching my breath from the quick run up the stairs. "What is this about, sir?" I asked. I was concerned that Dr. Ravenwood was unhappy with my job performance. Having enjoyed my work as a historian on ancient artifacts for several months now, the last thing I wanted was to be fired. Holding a steady job was difficult after the events of Yamatai and Siberia.

"I think you're going to like this," Ravenwood smiled as he sat down in the leather chair behind his desk. I sighed of relief—I wasn't being fired, thank God.

"I was digging through my great-grandfather, Abner's—as well as Doctor Jones'—journals," he continued, pulling out a pile of books as tall as a small child. "…And I found some very interesting research about an artifact from a temple deep within the Lost River Delta." He opened one book to a page covered with scribbling, complete with a drawing of a red jewel. Above it was a sketch of an Indian god that was holding the jewel; its eyes were shut for some reason.

"The 'Jewel of Power,'" I said softly, my eyes scanning the drawing. "The same 'Jewel' that Dr. Jones almost died trying to find back in the 30s?"

"You've got it," Ravenwood said, smiling. "You certainly know your history, Miss Croft."

"It's a well-documented story, Doctor," I said, leaning back in my chair. "But nothing noteworthy came of his efforts. Tourists got lost, Jones got them out. He wanted the find the Jewel, him being a treasure hunter and all, but he was unsuccessful. He claimed the temple had some mystical activity going on, but I personally think he was just dazed and confused after days of wandering through there. You know, hallucinations from exhaustion, dehydration, the like."

Ravenwood looked displeased. "Lara, I thought you, of all people, would be the first to jump at the opportunity to follow in the footsteps of the famous Indiana Jones."

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. I'd spent so many years in the shadow of my father, Lord Richard Croft. People still compare me to him to this day; it seemed I would never break free from the shroud of his infamy. Even after my own discoveries and journeys, the name "Croft" was still associated with my father. The last thing I wanted was to be compared to yet another famous archaeologist, no matter how intriguing the story, or how legendary the artifact.

"I don't 'follow in the footsteps' of anyone, Doctor," I said coldly. "And I don't chase fairytales."

He stared blankly at me for several seconds, then leaned back in his chair, which made a crinkly sound as he moved.

"Miss Croft," he began with a heavy sigh. "I apologize for wording it in that way. You're a brilliant archaeologist, and a very adept adventurer, or so I've read. I figured this would be right up your alley and of extreme interest to you."

I sat silent for a moment. "How so?" I asked, still uninterested.

"I understand you're particularly interested in the realm of immortality, yes?"

"Yes, that's right," I said. _Just like the man whose shadow I cannot escape_ , I thought.

"Then you'd be hard-pressed to find a better source of eternal life than the Jewel of Power. Lara, when your father worked with me here at the museum, I saw his never-ending chase for immortality. The Jewel was one of his prime focuses. You see, the deity that resides within the temple, Mara, was said to grant eternal youth to any who traveled to the temple for worship, and did not look into her eyes. The Jewel, being the source of Mara's power, was thus said to contain the power of immortality."

"Why haven't I come across any of this in his research, then?" I questioned him. "I've gone through his studies dozens of times—journals, cassette tapes, news clippings; you name it. I've not once seen anything in his research regarding that temple, nor its supposed jewel."

"You haven't let me finish, Lara. I remember him using my great-grandfather's research as inspiration, as Abner was a big fanatic on the subject as well. Because Abner was constantly traveling between London and Chicago for work, he wouldn't allow Richard to take hold of his research for very long; it remained here at the British Museum. I've only just now managed to find it, Lara. Here—take a look at this."

Ravenwood pulled out another book from the pile, and flipped it open. I gasped, amazed at what I saw. Line after line of my father's distinct handwriting; I would recognize that print anywhere, having studied his writings so many times.

"Dad," I whispered, running my fingers across his writing. I took the book from Ravenwood, my father's voice echoing in my head. It was as if he was sitting right next to me on my bed, telling one of the many fascinating tales of his adventures. I remember being a little girl, yearning to be a great adventurer, too—I was mystified by the ancient cultures, civilizations, and artifacts that he studied and experienced firsthand. His voice spoke of The Jewel of Power, which was said to be hidden deep within the vast caverns of a Bengalese temple (the 'Temple of the Forbidden Eye') and guarded by a vengeful god, Mara. He said he was never able to journey to the temple, but so desperately wished that he could, if only to see for himself if the stories Dr. Jones recounted were true.

"Well?" Ravenwood inquired after I read the pages for several minutes. "What do you think now, Lara?"

"I think…" I started, my voice trembling. "I think I was wrong to doubt you. To doubt your relationship with my father. I've come to learn that he was right about so much—if he thought these stories were true, I've no reason to believe otherwise. His instincts haven't let me down yet."

He clasped his hands together and grinned, his eyes twinkling. "Lara, if you go to India, go into that temple, and find that jewel… you'd be the missing link in the unfinished quest of two great explorers. It would be… _revolutionary_."

I pondered this for a few seconds. On one hand, it would be astounding to be able to visit a place my father dreamed of but never could see himself. But on the other, the chance of finding the artifact was quite slim. I normally liked to do things on my own, but I thought it couldn't hurt to bring another seasoned explorer along.

"Okay," I said confidently. "I'll make the travel arrangements."

"That won't be necessary," he said quickly. "The Museum will fund this expedition—the board is very interested in the possibility of future exhibits and lectures based on your findings."

 _Great. More lectures in front of hundreds of skeptics._ "That's _if_ I find something," I muttered, my back to him. "I'm bringing Drake. He's done this before."

"Drake?!" Ravenwood gasped, standing up and slamming his hands on his desk. "Absolutely not. He's destroyed countless precious artifacts and remnants, Lara. He can't be trusted."

I turned around and stared him down. "Mr. Drake has discovered El Dorado and Shambhala. If anyone has the know-how to track down such a fabled artifact as the Jewel of Power, it's him."

The doctor simply stared back at me, his brow furrowed and his lips pursed. He knew I'd made up my mind, but I could tell that he was still unhappy with my decision.

" _I'll make the travel arrangements, doctor,_ " I said again, emphasizing my words.


	3. Chapter 3

"Amazing…" I practically whispered as I gasped at the sight of the beautiful mural on the wall before us. "Look at that!"

"It must be Mara," Nathan said. I could tell that he was admiring the mural as much as I was. "Look at that medallion she's wearing, and the bowl she's holding."

"Probably." I pulled out Jones' journal and flipped to a page with a sketch similar to the mural. "It looks like this image depicts the 'Amulet of Future Knowledge,' hence the eye, the 'Bowl of Earthly Riches,' and the 'Fountain of Eternal Youth.'"

"We have to pick just one, don't we?" Nathan crossed his arms, looking disappointed.

"I believe so. But that's _if_ this whole thing is actually true. We've still got a ways to go until we find that out for certain."

I stepped closer to the mural and held up my glow stick to the wall, taking a closer look at the fading paint.

"Look," I said, looking back at Nathan and then back to the painting. "That sunburst—those rays are emanating from Mara."

"…And?" Nathan said with one eyebrow raised.

"The Jewel of Power is usually depicted in Jones' journal with with a red glow surrounding it," I told him. "These rays behind Mara are the same exact color, albeit a little faded."

"So, what does that mean?" Nathan asked. "The Jewel is protected by Mara?"

"Possibly," I nodded. "Either that, or the Jewel and Mara are one and the same—in other words, the jewel could just be a physical representation of Mara's power."

"Maybe that's why poor Henry had such a hard time finding the damn thing," Nathan laughed. "Maybe it doesn't exist."

I shot Nathan a side-eyed glance.

"I'm not willing to come to any conclusions yet," I said. "There's still a chance that it's somewhere in here. We've just got to keep moving."

Suddenly, I heard a whirring noise from outside the temple—it grew louder with every second.

"Oh, shit!" I half-whispered, half-yelled. "Choppers. They're here!" I clipped my glow stick to my belt loop and pulled Nathan's arm, instructing him to follow. I started at a jog, delving further into the winding and cavernous of the temple.

"Trinity?" Nathan called from behind me.

"Who else?" I yelled without turning around. I continued sprinting through the dark, musty caverns, brushing cobwebs out of my face and hair. "They've picked up on our trail. They know exactly what we're after."

I came to an abrupt halt—there was nowhere to go. I heard the sound of heavy boots pounding on the stone floors that Nathan and I had just ran on ourselves, meaning Trinity was close behind.

"Shit!" I said under my breath.

Nathan pulled out his pistol and aimed in in the direction the footsteps were coming from.

"Lara!" he said urgently, trying to stay quiet. "What's the plan?"

"I'm thinking!" I snapped back.

My head darted this way and that, my mind trying its best to analyze the environment under pressure. I noticed a pile of rubble ten feet or so in front of me; it looked unstable. I hurried over and pulled out my trusty red climbing axe from its holster. I glanced behind me, hearing the footsteps growing ever louder. _They're almost here. No time to lose._ With two hands gripping hard, I swung at the rubble, loosening some rocks with the first blow. I swung again, and again, and then once more until dozens of rocks came loose, revealing a small opening into a cavern just big enough for Nathan and I to squeeze through.

I ducked into the opening, hiding against the side of it to protect myself from gunfire. I peeked my head out and saw saw Trinity soldiers running behind cover, firing their assault rifles directly at us. Nathan was on the floor behind some debris, using it as makeshift cover. He was holding his handgun in his right hand and giving me a thumbs up with the other. I motioned for him to get his arse over to me, and he smirked as he reached down to his belt.

"What the hell are you doing?" I whispered to myself.

Nathan pulled out a single hand grenade from his utility belt, and pulled the pin out with his teeth. With one swift motion, he flung the grenade behind him and then made a beeline for the opening. He swung himself inside and took cover next to me.

"Get down!" he ordered.

I placed my arms over my head and ducked down as far as I could go.

 _BOOM!_

The sound of men screaming as their comrades were blown to bits echoed throughout the cavernous space. In an instant, the roof of the area we were in began to collapse—even more screaming now. Nathan pulled me away from the opening of the cavern as rocks fell, blocking the entrance. We were safe… for now. I turned around, panting, and noticed the ground on which we had just been sitting was covered with dozens of rocks.

"Thanks," I said as I tried to catch my breath. "If you'd waited a second later we'd have been flattened."

"Don't mention it," he said. He was sitting down against a large boulder and wiping sweat from his forehead. I stood up with great effort, grunting in the process, and made my way over to him. I sat down next to him and rested my head against the hard rock.

"Here," I said, pulling out my canteen from my backpack. "Drink this."

"I'm good," Nathan said with a wave of his hand.

"No," I insisted. "You're sweating bullets. You'll be dehydrated soon." I moved the canteen closer to his mouth. His lips were pursed tight, his eyes glaring sideways at mine. Finally, he opened his mouth, and I poured the water gently into his mouth until he closed it, and I pulled the canteen away. I took a sip myself, and began to put the canteen away when I noticed he was hurt.

"Nathan, your arm," I said. His arm was wounded and bleeding. "One of those bastards' bullets must have scathed you."

Nathan chuckled. "Nothin' I'm not used to by now."

"You and me both," I grinned. I poured some water over the wound to clean it out, then pulled out a bit of bandage to use as a tourniquet. I tied the bandage around his arm and he let out a small wince. "Sorry."

"It's alright," he said with a sigh. "Thanks for the help."

"Don't mention it," I half-smiled, stealing his line. I stood up and slung my backpack over my shoulders again. "Right. We'd better keep moving. They're probably working on getting that entryway blasted as we speak."

Nathan reached for the boulder to help pull himself up. I offered my hand, and he grabbed that instead. His grip was warm and firm—I'd almost forgotten what a man's strong grasp felt like. It sent a strange surge throughout my body; a slight tingling feeling came forth. I studied his body, the details of his musculature clear and visible beneath his tight shirt, his sweat only making it cling tighter to him. _Stop it, Lara_ , I thought. _He's married, and you're working._ I shook my head and brushed the feelings aside.

 _Though, I am just a human, after all._


	4. Chapter 4

Nathan and I walked side by side throughout the dark, suffocating tunnels of the cavern in silence. He towered over me, his height reaching about 20 centimeters taller than my own. I looked up at him every now and then, hoping for him to break the tension. The light from my glow stick illuminated very little of our surroundings; I could only see two feet in front of me, and all I could hear was the patter of our boots treading over the dirt and rock below.

We weren't sure exactly where we were headed, but from the looks of it, this was a man-made path. I noticed signs of previous excavation from the Jones party, such as burnt-out lamps and signs warning of possible cave-in. We assumed we were at least going in the right direction.

Nathan's facial features were cast in various shadows, I noticed. I took a quick glance at him out of the corner of my eye—he looked back and grinned. I suppose he took this as an indicator to strike up a conversation.

"This is a lot of bat poop, huh?" Nathan said, looking at the rocks we passed by. They looked as if they were dripping, oozing, yet they were hardened solid.

"Guano," I corrected him. "But, yes, it's technically bat poop."

A couple more moments of silence.

"Those Trinity guys are pretty ruthless, huh?" Nathan finally said.

"You have no idea," I shook my head. "And that's not even the half of it." I stared down at my boots which were faintly blue from the light of my glow stick. I recalled the horrors that Trinity has wrought: death and destruction of innocent people and centuries-old monuments and artifacts. They are brutal, but even that word isn't sufficient to describe their motives. They'd stop at nothing to attain what they seek, even if it means killing every single living thing that stands in their way. I'd learned this the hard way—I saw countless people die at their hands, and in turn I had to kill dozens of their men to survive. "If they catch up with us again, then, well…"

"Well, what?" Nathan asked.

I looked up at him, my expression telling that my experience with Trinity wasn't a pleasant one.

"Let's just say they're a force to be reckoned with."

"But so are we, Lara," Nathan said, gently patting me on the back. "Not only are we two of the world's greatest treasure hunters, but we've got the famous Indiana Jones on our side. Put us together and we're pretty much unstoppable."

"I'm not just a treasure hunter," I said coldly.

Nathan was silent for a moment. "And you think I'm just a treasure hunter? Ouch."

 _Shit, that came out wrong._ I stopped walking, as did Nathan, and looked up at his eyes, shrouded in shadow. "I'm sorry. That's not what I meant. Look, you've got quite the reputation for going to the ends of the earth, chasing after treasures and lost cities. No one does that better than you, so that's why I asked you to help me."

"And you've got quite the reputation for making up ridiculous stories about immortal prophets and vengeful deities, yet here I am," Nathan said. "Do you think I came with you just because I thought there was a chance of finding a little treasure?"

"No," I said, turning away slightly. "I know you came with me because you're the only one who can help me find answers; help me understand what Dr. Jones and my father were after. We're two people in this world who understand what each other has been through, and what's at stake each time we go after something new like this. It seems we both have reputations that don't quite live up to our names, don't we?"

Nathan chuckled. "I've had a hell of a time trying to convince people that I'm not a lunatic. I've seen so much—been to so many places that, for most people, only exist in legends—and yet I have zilch to show for it. So of course I believe you. Why do you think I'm standing here with you right now? I knew from the moment you called that there was a chance to uncover a huge piece of history that Jones missed. I get such a thrill out of that sense of discovery… the treasure's just a nice bonus."

I laughed softly as we started walking again. "You're one of the only people on this planet that believes me."

"From the moment I attended your lecture I believed you. I wanted to know everything there was to know about your adventures—the culture, the remnants… the artifacts."

I thought back to that night at the British Museum, just weeks after I had returned home to London from my traumatic experience on the island of Yamatai. That's where I first met Nathan, and that's when I knew he was one of the only people who would ever understand what I've been through.

I remember that day vividly.

 _3 years earlier._

"I'm not asking you to believe everything I've just shared with you," I said, my voice hoarse from speaking for so long. I was standing at a podium on a stage in front of hundreds of my colleagues: archaeologists, historians, people I considered friends. "But I want you to know that there are things in this world beyond our comprehension. The things I experienced on Yamatai were real—I have the battle scars to show for it. My father, Richard Croft, spent his whole life trying to understand how, and why, these things happen. I don't know the answer to that yet, but I can guarantee you I won't stop searching. I'll take this time to answer some questions from the audience."

Silence.

What I saw before me was a mix of dumbfounded expressions and disbelieving smirks. I was prepared for that. What I wasn't prepared for was a raised hand from the one and only: Nathan Drake.

My heart sank to my stomach. I'd been a fan of Drake's for years, reading with dedication his accounts of his adventures and his findings. El Dorado, Shambhala, Iram of the Pillars… all of which I could only dream of experiencing for myself. I equated him to a modern-day Indiana Jones, which was a lofty comparison.

My mouth fell slightly open. I hadn't even noticed him sitting there in the back row this whole time. I pointed to him and stuttered, "y-yes, you, sir." The crowd of nonbelievers turned in their seats to see who was brave enough to comment on my story. As soon as they realized who it was, the auditorium became filled with loud chattering and distinct words of disbelief. Nathan was quite the notorious and infamous figure among these people; most believed him reckless and unskilled, claiming he destroyed ancient artifacts to attain treasure. I, however, admired him.

"Quiet, please," I spoke up into the microphone. "This is an open discussion. Let him speak, please."

Nathan stood up as a microphone was handed to him by a museum assistant. "Hi there," his voice came loudly. He adjusted the microphone's length a little further from his mouth. "I'm Nathan Drake; you may have heard of me. I find your story of Yamatai fascinating, but I have to ask: was there an artifact? Some centuries-old piece of gold or crystal that you needed in order to stop the storms?"

Another small bout of chattering, which I ignored.

"Not in the traditional sense," I spoke over the audience. "The soul of Himiko was passed down through different bodies, or vessels, for centuries. My friend, Sam, was the next target of the soul transfer. So in order to end the cycle, I had to destroy the body the soul was contained in at the time. That body was the closest thing to the artifact you're suggesting. Unfortunately, that artifact has been destroyed, hence the end of the storms on Yamatai."

"Interesting. Thanks, Miss Croft," Nathan said, and handed the microphone back to the assistant.

"No, thank you," I responded. His eyes remained locked on mine for a few seconds, and unless my mind was playing tricks on me, his lips took form of a slight smile.

Later, after the audience had finished with their questions and began to clear out of the auditorium, Nathan approached the podium that I was still standing behind. I looked up from my papers and was surprised to see him standing at the edge of the stage, looking up at me.

"It's nice to see you up close," he said slyly, offering his hand to help me down from the stage.

I reluctantly grabbed his hand and hopped down off of the stage, landing next to him.

"You, as well, Mr. Drake," I said with my arms crossed. "Thanks for the hand."

"So, you know who I am," he said, inching closer to me.

"Of course I do," I remained standing where I was, not getting closer nor further from him. "You're only one of the world's best explorers."

" _The_ best, some might say," he said confidently. "But it looks like you're coming after the top spot."

I scoffed. "I'm not after your title, Mr. Drake. I'm just a truth-seeker. It just so happens that we tend to share a lot of the same qualities, you and I."

"We both have light brown hair, you're a beautiful Brit, I'm a handsome American," he said softly.

I blushed. I never blush. _Dammit_.

"I-I was thinking more along the lines of 'we both seek the unknown,'" I stammered. "But, you are very handsome. I'll give you that." _Shit, you look desperate, Lara._

"How about I buy you a drink," Nathan offered, now mere inches away from me. "You tell me what you've been through, and I'll do the same."

"I, err…" My eyes darted to the side. "I can't. I have to drive home." My heart was pounding out of my chest. I hadn't been approached by a guy like this in years, let alone one of my biggest idols.

"We'll call a cab," he said. "Just one drink."

I sighed. "Okay. I know a place nearby. But just _one._ "


	5. Chapter 5

"Whiskey, on the rocks," Drake called as the bartender came over to us. "My friend here will have a—"

"Bitter," the bartender smiled. "I know. What are you doing here, Lara? Haven't seen you 'round here at the Nine Bells since you quit last year."

"Just having a chat over drinks with my friend, Mr. Drake," I said, nodding over to him. "I've missed you, Liz!"

Liz was an older, middle-aged woman who I used to work with at the Nine Bells. She was a hoot; I always knew my shift would be tolerable thanks to her. She was always looking out for me.

"You can call me 'Nathan', you know," he said as Liz handed him his drink.

"Ooh," Liz teased. "First-name basis now, are we? Then you can call me 'Liz.'" She winked and giggled as she poured my glass of bitter.

I smirked. She handed me my glass and leaned over the bar. "So I heard what happened to you in the papers, dear. I can't even imagine. Terrible, it is. You okay?"

"I'm fine," I said. I didn't want to think about it any more today. Getting through that lecture was torture enough. " _Nathan_ here came all the way from the States just to hear all about it."

She looked at him and smiled softly. "Well, you're alive and that's what counts," Liz said. "I'll let you two get chattin' now. Cheers!"

"Cheers!" Nathan and I said as we took a drink from our glasses.

"Ahh," he said as he set his glass down. I did the same.

"The Nine Bells always had my favorite glass of bitter," I said, looking down at my cup. "My best friend, Sam, and I used to come here all the time when we had the chance. I'd have to get her down off the bar after just a few drinks." I laughed at the memory.

"You never told me what happened to her," Nathan said.

My eyes shot up to his. My brain brought forth vivid memories of that incident at the top of the ziggurat, where Mathias brought Sam and prepared her for a soul-transfer ritual. "When I reached the top of the ziggurat, I heard Sam's agonizing screams as Mathias began transferring the soul of Himiko into her body. I managed to stop the transfer, but it wasn't until after a few minutes."

"A soul transfer…" Nathan mumbled. "Incomplete, but lasted for a few minutes? That can't be good."

"I know," I said flatly. I'd tossed around the idea of part of Himiko's soul residing in Sam, but hadn't wanted to accept that it might be true. "I just hope I got rid of Himiko's soul. For good."

"So, how has she been acting lately?"

"Sam and I used to do everything together," I started. "But these past weeks have proved that Yamatai left a scar on our friendship that I don't think can be undone. Lately, she's been avoiding me, even though we're flatmates, and I don't know why. None of us who survived the island are quite the same as before."

My heart dropped at the mention of my surviving friends; it made me remember that some of them _didn't_ survive. Steph, Grim, Alex… Roth. I still carried the guilt of their deaths on my shoulders. I felt responsible for losing each and every one of them. And I almost lost Sam, too.

"She'll come around," Nathan encouraged me. "That was your first real adventure, eh?"

I nodded. "The first. I'd never had to run, jump, and climb so much in my life. I'm just glad I was physically prepared for all that."

"It's pretty exhausting, isn't it?" Nathan laughed. "I think I've fallen off of things more times than I've actually found treasure."

"You make it sound like it's a lifestyle, Nathan," I said.

"In a way, it is," he said, taking a sip of his drink. "The adrenaline, the rush, the thrill of the action. You get hooked—hooked on the sense of adventure and excitement; hooked on the relief you feel when you escape death from the tenth time."

"Or when you have to kill a man for the tenth time," I said solemnly. "Or the twentieth."

Nathan's face dropped. "That's the hardest part of it all."

"But isn't it scary how easy it becomes?" I said, resting my face in my left hand. "The first time I killed a man… I almost lost it. I almost thought I couldn't keep going. Seeing the life leave his eyes, hearing his choking stop—but then something took over me; an instinct from deep inside me told me to keep going, because this is what I knew I had to do in order to survive."

"Survival," Nathan nodded. "Our most important instinct. It becomes either you or them, and of course your first choice is you."

I lowered my voice. This probably wasn't something we should have been talking about in public, but if anyone could understand, it was Nathan. "After I got off the island I had probably taken over a hundred lives. By the end it was almost like second nature. I turned into a killer, Nathan. And I can't ever take that back."

"You did what you had to do," he said flatly.

I nodded. I could tell by the look on his face and his tone of voice that he'd killed as many, if not more, men than I had. I downed what was left in my glass, and Liz brought over another.

"Oh, no, thank you," I began, not wanting to drink too much.

"She'll take it," Nathan said, pushing the glass toward me. "Won't you, Lara? I think you deserve to unwind a little. It's on me."

I glared at him and then smiled up at Liz. "Okay," I said, grabbing the glass. "Thanks, Liz."

 _Two drinks later._

"So, how's Elena?"

Nathan raised his eyebrows. "How'd you know about her?"

"I've read your books, Nathan," I smiled. "You've quite a lot to say about Ms. Fisher."

He looked uneasy, scratching the back of his head. "We're not on the best of terms. She's a little sick of me getting into trouble, so we're not exactly together at the moment."

"Oh," I said awkwardly. "I'm… I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"Don't worry about it," Nathan laughed. "It's given me time to explore my horizons. Travel a little. Meet some fascinating people like you."

I blushed. "Oh, I'm not fascinating," I giggled nervously.

"But you are," Nathan said. He leaned over across the table and brushed part of my fringe out of my face. "Your striking brown eyes. Your smooth, almond-brown hair. And your passion for history and adventure… It's all so, very fascinating."

My heart raced. I wasn't sure if he was doing what I thought he was doing, but it seemed like his face was getting awfully close to mine. "I'm… fascinating?" I barely managed to stammer before his lips locked onto mine. My shocked, wide-open eyes soon shut and enjoyed the moment. My lips tingled with electricity, which coursed through my entire body. He pulled away, his eyes locked onto mine as he held my chin in his hand.

"You're the most fascinating person I've ever met," Nathan smirked.

I woke up the next morning with Nathan lying next to me in my bed, snoring gently as he slept. I replayed that night over and over in my head for months after he went back home to the States—it was the most fun I'd had in a long time, and definitely helped me forget about my recent experiences. Things worked out with him and Elena, and we decided it best to remain colleagues and friends.

I wish it hadn't turned out that way.


	6. Chapter 6

"You're awfully quiet over there," Nathan said, nudging my shoulder with his arm. "You're not having second thoughts, are you?"

His voice snapped me out of my daydream and back into our current situation. Instead of cold, damp London, I was back in a cold, damp cavern that seemed to last for miles.

I furrowed my brow and looked up at him. "I _don't do_ second thoughts, Nathan. I was just thinking."

"About what?"

"About… bats," I said, confusedly. "'Warning! Do not disturb bats!'" I read from a sign that appeared in front of us, my glow stick held up close so I could read it. "I haven't seen any bats, nor have I heard any. Have you?"

Nathan shook is head and shrugged. "No. But I guess it would make sense, considering all this bat poop—"

"Guano."

"—Guano… that's around here."

"Look!" I half-yelled, holding the stick above my head. "Up there, nestled in the rocks."

Nathan squinted his eyes and looked up into the far-reaches of the cavern where a hole from the ceiling created a single shaft of daylight, illuminating a shining object. "It looks like some kind of jewel-encrusted egg. I'm surprised it's still here, considering Jones' crew picked most of this place clean years ago."

"Right," I agreed. "And then look, over there, I said, pointing my glow stick ahead of us. "An opening with a large, circular slab of rock off to the side. Do you think that egg triggers it to shut?"

"Probably," Nathan nodded, crossing his arms. "Let's avoid touching that, then, shall we?"

"Best if we didn't," I agreed. "We're not here for shiny eggs, as lovely as it looks. I'd like to make it to the 'Hall of Promise,' at least."

 _Crack!_

A pounding sound came from above us.

"Oh, shit!" I muttered. Rocks fell from the ceiling next to the opening; holes formed, allowing various beams of light to cascade down, illuminating the once-dark cavern.

"Trinity?" Nate sighed. "Not them again!"

"Those bastards just don't know when to give up," I said, pulling my bow over my head, and lining up an arrow, aiming it at the ceiling where the holes were forming. "Let's try to pick them off as they come down."

Nathan nodded, pulling out his pistol and aiming it at the ceiling as I did.

"But mind that egg," I warned. "We don't want to seal off our only exit point."

"Got it," he said, jaw clenched.

Ropes descended from the ceiling, and I slowed my breathing, steadying my aim in order to get a better shot. _Come on, you bastards. Come on down._

"Lower your weapons," a voice called from behind us. I flinched, turning my head to get a glimpse of the person who had spoken.

"Who are you?" I called, moving my aim to the direction the voice had come from. " _Where_ are you?"

Nathan kept his aim up at the ceiling. "Lara, they're rappelling down."

"Fire one bullet and you're dead," the voice spoke again. I squinted my eyes, my bow aimed and ready to fire. And then she came into view: a tall, caramel-skinned woman with silky brown that fell to her shoulders. She wore a black jumpsuit with high, military-style combat boots. A utility belt around her waist held various items such as knives, a pistol, grenades, etc. Behind her came several armed Trinity mercenaries, all aiming their guns at Nathan and I.

"I won't repeat myself again," she said in her thick Spanish accent. " _Lower your damn weapons. Now._ "

I swore under my breath and threw my bow onto the ground in front of me. I slung my quiver off from my shoulder, and threw that on the floor as well. Nathan released his aim and tossed his pistol aside, too.

"We got ourselves a feisty one," Nathan joked as he put his hands up. I shot him a look over my shoulder, signaling him to shut up.

The Spanish woman sauntered over to Nathan, eyeing him up and down. "And we have ourselves a jokester," she hissed, running her hands along the side of his face. Her long, claw-like nails slid across his skin, then she slapped him. Hard. "Jokes don't belong here. You think this is some cliché action movie? Or maybe a video game?" She chuckled softly. "You're so naïve. You may be shot by my men, but you won't be able to come back to life and try again. So pay attention and do as I say."

She walked away from Nathan, who had a red handprint embedded in the side of his face, and came over to me. The woman was about my height, so she met my eye-level as she stood in front of me. Her irises were like black holes—they were so dark that the pupil wasn't visible. I stared back at her, trying not to show that I was intimidated.

"Give me the journal," she said, holding out her hand expectantly.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I said in a low, gravelly tone.

The woman shook her head and laughed. "You're pretty, but I know you're not stupid. It would be such a shame to ruin that pretty face of yours. If you don't give me what I want, you're going to get more than just a slap across the face."

I looked down at the ground, trying desperately to come up with a plan. I was usually a quick thinker, but my thoughts were racing so fast that I couldn't form any of them together into a coherent plan. I thought several scenarios through, but most of them ended in me, Nathan, or both of us being shot dead.

 _BAM!_

My head shot back up to the woman, who was holding a pistol above her head. She'd fired a warning shot, and lowered the pistol so it was aimed straight at me.

"You have five seconds to give me that journal, or your pretty face will be blown off," she growled. "Five…"

I reached into my backpack.

"Four…"

I grabbed hold of the journal.

"Three…"

Four, six… twenty red, glowing dots appeared at the top of the cavern.

"Two…"

I threw the journal on the ground.

"One."

Hundreds of bats zoomed into view, awakened by the gunshot, starting to swarm around the woman and her mercenaries. I fell to the floor, covering my head as the bats whizzed past. I heard screams as the bats tore into the flesh of the men with their razor-sharp teeth. The woman screamed as she flailed her arms, trying to keep the bats off of her.

"Dammit!" She yelled, trying to shoot the bats with her pistol, but failing due to their speed.

My head whipped up as I heard a sudden grinding sound—the large stone slab was slowly beginning to roll. I knew we had to make a dash for it if we wanted to escape the bats, and Trinity.

"Nathan!" I called. He looked up at me and I pointed to the egg we had noticed earlier: it had been knocked over by one of the bats, triggering the stone slab to activate. He shot me a quick thumbs-up as he got to his feet. I did the same, picking up the journal in the process. I sprinted toward the opening as fast as my legs would carry me.

"She's getting away with the journal!" the woman screamed at her men. "Don't just stand there—get them, you idiots!"

I stumbled as bullets began to whir past me. One or two scathed my skin, causing me to let out a wince of pain, but I pressed on.

"Almost there!" Nathan called over his shoulder to me. "We can make it!"

"We'd sure as hell better!" I yelled back. I looked back to see several Trinity men running after me, getting dangerously close. Thankfully their aim was faulty due to the still-swarming bats. As we reached the opening, Nathan turned sideways to fit through, and I did the same. The gap was extremely small, but I managed to squeeze through; one of the Trinity men managed to get in as well. One was a little too slow, getting himself crushed between the large stone slab and the side of the opening. I slightly smirked as I heard him scream, the sound of cracking bones echoing throughout the new room we found ourselves in. _Bastard_.

I kept running as I analyzed our new surroundings—a long, narrow hallway, and getting smaller by the second. My eyes shot up to the spike-covered ceiling that was getting lower rapidly. _Trying to kill us this soon, Mara?_ I thought. _Ease up, why don't you?_ "Watch your head, Nathan!" I called. He was taller than I was, so I worried about the spikes reaching him before me.

"Got it!" he panted. "See if you can take that guy behind us out, will you?"

"Alright," I said. I noticed a conveniently-placed bamboo piece that was holding up the ceiling—at least, it was trying to; it was bending and cracking under the pressure. I grabbed hold of it and yanked it out from under the ceiling, causing the spikes to accelerate. The piece I managed to grab was sharp where it broke, so I slowed down and fell to my stomach. The Trinity guard was trailing too close, so he tripped over my body and landed with a thud in front of me. He groaned, trying to reach for the gun he dropped. I kicked his gun out of his reach, and grasped the bamboo shard in both of my hands. With one swift motion, I stabbed it into the back of his leg, covering my face as blood rushed up the hollow interior of the bamboo and spurted out the top. The guard screamed in agony; I merely narrowed my eyes as I stepped over his body and scooped up his machine gun. "Burn in hell, Bastard."

I continued at a run, faster this time, as the ceiling closed in on me. Nathan was already in the clear, waving for me to hurry. My legs were about to collapse with fatigue, but something within me kept me upright.

" _Just keep moving…_ " Roth's voice echoed in my mind. " _Just. Keep. Moving!"_

I let out a yell as I dove through the tiny opening at the end of the hallway, sliding on my belly to safety. I heard a loud _BOOM_ , which signaled that the spiked-ceiling had lowered itself as far as it could go. Then came more agonizing screams from the poor sap I left alive just so he would have to suffer the pain of being impaled. I thought back to the very beginning of my Yamatai experience, when I fell onto a piece of rebar that pierced my lower-left abdomen. I was sure that was what he must have felt like at that moment, only multiplied due to the several spikes that impaled him. From the sound of his screams, the spikes missed his head—it might take minutes until he was dead.

"Jeez," Nathan said, hands on his knees, panting excessively. "Nice one." He extended his hand out to help me up, and I gladly took it.

"Thanks," I breathed, slowly getting to my feet. I wiped a bit of the man's blood off my cheek, but it didn't matter—I was already covered in my own blood, thanks to Trinity's bullets and the rough ground scraping my exposed arms. "I've got to start wearing long sleeves," I joked, looking down at my blue-grey tank top.

"That's probably a good idea," Nathan laughed, wiping some dust out of my hair. "You really made that guy suffer, huh?"

"He deserved it," I said plainly. "I told you, Trinity is no laughing matter. Anyone who works for them doesn't deserve a quick and easy way out."

"Fair enough," he agreed. "You weren't kidding. That woman was intense—who do you think she was?"

I shook my head. "I don't know, but I'm sure we've not seen the last of her. She's probably Trinity's new puppet, acting as a leader. After Konstantin and Ana died, Trinity likely looked within their ranks for someone who could take on the task of following us and trying to take what we're after."

"All I know is she's _bat-shit_ crazy," Nate grinned.

I looked at him, and he raised his eyebrows. A smile formed on my face, and I could tell he was trying to get a reaction out of me. I tried to keep my laughter in, but I failed—laughter commenced in full force. "Bat… shit…" I said between laughs. I was laughing harder than I had in a long time, and Nathan joined in, too. "You're too much, Nathan Drake," I said, holding my stomach.

"Hey," he said, his laughter settling down. "I see the opportunity for a good pun and I take it."

I wiped tears from my eyes. This was why we were friends, Nathan and I. Not only did he make an excellent partner, full of knowledge and expertise, but he knew just when to lighten the mood. He's been there for me during some of my darkest times; he always knows when to lift my spirits and take my mind off of the events that were happening around me.

"Oh," I sighed deeply. "As much fun as joking about bat poop is, we've still got a jewel to find and a god to meet."

Nathan nodded, smiling proudly from his excellent pun. "We definitely do. Let's continue, shall we?"

"We shall."


	7. Chapter 7

Nathan and I trudged forward, inching our way through a narrow passageway that seemed ready to crumble at any second; dirt and rocks fell from above, making faint crumbling sounds that echoed slightly. I was still trying to catch my breath following the run-in with Trinity—I'd hoped to never see them again, but I knew that hoping wouldn't stop their ruthlessness. My brain was still working overtime, trying to decipher who that woman was; her soft features and sultry voice replayed over and over in my mind. Whoever she was, I doubted she was in any real position of power—it was likely that she was fooled into thinking this way, but in actuality she was probably only doing the dirty work for the real powers that be.

We turned a corner and a massive room opened up in front of us, light shining through small holes that lined the domed rotunda. I stopped dead in my tracks, looking up at the ceiling with my mouth hanging wide open. I was in awe—the ceiling of the room was covered with a large, painstakingly-detailed painting of Mara with her eyes closed, and two snakes on either side of her.

"Would you look at that," Nate said, forcing me out of my trance. "It's amazing what these ancient civilizations were capable of."

"It's stunning," I breathed, shaking my head. "How they were able to achieve such a perfect balance of science and art is beyond me. Look up there!" I said, pointing to the middle of ceiling. Several holes lined a smaller domed part of the ceiling.

"Some kind of… clock?" Nate said, looking upwards. "Or maybe a calendar."

"Exactly," I nodded. "The holes are mostly blocked by overgrowth, but if I had to guess, I'd say the light would have shone through at various points in time and illuminated one of those paintings."

"And that's how the followers of Mara knew what to bring as a tribute."

"Right," I agreed. "And it could have even helped with their farming." I circled the outside of the room, running my hands against inscriptions and paintings that still remained on the wall. My fingers felt ridges and uneven textures where words were written. A sudden chill came over my body—how exciting it was to be standing in such an ancient space, actually touching words that somebody etched into that wall thousands of years ago. Moments like this made me remember why I love seeking out these places; these remnants and remains. My hand, connected with the wall, created a stream of energy that made me feel like I was connected to this place; I felt as if I could learn its secrets and its history just by pressing my palm against the rough, brown stone.

Nate lowered his head and looked around the large, open space. He raised an eyebrow and jogged over to the middle of the room, kicking up dust that slowly settled behind him. "Hey, come check this out," he called.

Once more Nathan's words pulled me out of a daze. I turned my head and pulled my hand away from the wall, curious to see what he had found. "What is it?"

He pointed to a large stone slab that was propped up by several poles of bamboo. The slab was covered with paintings of Mara and various other things, such as the three promises of treasure, eternal youth, and visions of the future.

"The piece of stone used to cover this open shaft. Look," he said, pointing down a dark abyss that appeared never-ending. "How far down do you think it goes?"

"Let's find out, shall we?" I said. I shook a glow stick and dropped it gently into the shaft. It fell for several seconds, its blue light cascading down and illuminating the sides of the shaft as it dropped. We both peered our heads over the edges and watched as it fell, anticipating the soft _thud_ that sounded as it landed at the bottom. I squinted, barely able to make out a decaying skeleton that lay mangled at the bottom of the shaft, bags of gold coins and a rope were scattered around it.

"Yikes," Nathan whispered. "Look, here. There's a sign: 'Caution. Do Not Pull Rope! Handling Fragile Artifacts' it says."

"Huh. The poor sap. It looks like his rope was connected here," I said, pointing to a couple pieces of bamboo that looked to have provided support. "Hmm. I suppose someone didn't read the warning properly."

"You tell someone to something and they do the opposite anyway." Nate chuckled. "Never fails."

"Right," I smirked. "Just like how I told you to use the bridge instead of the stairs outside of the temple?" 

"Ha ha," Nathan said sarcastically. "Just a lucky guess."

"Luck," I scoffed. "A don't guess, Nathan. Some might call it 'intuition.' At any rate, do you think it's worth looking down there? They obviously found something intriguing; they figured it was worth sending someone down the shaft." 

"I don't know," Nathan rubbed his chin, his fingers against his five o'clock shadow creating a soft scratching sound. "Who knows what else could be down there? Booby traps, snakes… it's a distraction from our end goal. How close are we?"

I reached into my backpack and pulled out Jones' journal, flipping to the page that contained a detailed map of the discovered portions of the temple. "According to these diagrams, we're standing in what Dr. Jones and his crew called the 'Rotunda Calendar.' Just a little further and we'll reach the 'vestibule,' which will lead us directly into the 'Hall of Promise.'"

"Which is where we'll meet the Idol, 'Mara,'" Nathan said with air quotes. "And then we'll know for sure whether or not the Jewel is here?"

"It is," I insisted. "This place is far too grand and elaborate for a mere agriculture calendar and some decoration." I turned and leaned against the rocky walls of the shaft opening, sighing deeply. "If it's not here then it means so many people devoted their time for nothing. Jones, you, me… my father. I can't leave this place empty-handed, and I sure as hell can't leave knowing that Trinity has the upper hand."

"We're gonna stop them," Nathan assured me, nudging my arm with his. "I know how important this is to you."

I looked up at him and smiled. "Thanks, Nate. That actually means a lot. I can't do this without you—I mean, I probably could, but it is nice to have some help every now and again."

Nathan let out a small laugh and crossed his arms. "After seeing how pesky those Trinity guys are firsthand, I'd settle for just keeping the Jewel out of their reach. I can't imagine what they'd do with something so powerful. Makes me uneasy just thinking about it."

"Welcome to my world, Nathan," I said with a soft laugh. "They've been on my tail for years now. I don't think there will ever be a day that I'm not looking behind my back constantly, wondering if someone's following me home. They're part of everyday life for me now—it would feel odd if I _didn't_ have someone with a gun chasing me through city streets and alleyways."

"That's rough," Nathan said. He shook his head and sighed. "What does it take to put a stop to these guys? We should go for it."

"Good luck with that," I raised my eyebrows at him. "We can kill as many of those bastards as possible, even that woman we met back there, but it won't destroy Trinity. They won't stop—not until they get what they're after, and luckily for me, what they're after is quite often the same exact thing I'm after."

"But we have the brainpower and the strength. Sure, we'd need some help, but I've got tons of friends I could call on." He started counting names on his fingers, listing their names. "Sully, Chloe, Charlie, you name it."

I smiled. "It would be quite the adventure, all right. But we've got to focus on the present right now—we need to keep our sights on who's after us at this very second. We can't do anything else until we deal with them first."

Nathan looked down at the ground, sighing deeply.

"Trust me," I said breathily and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Nobody wants to stop Trinity than I do, I promise you that. But we've got to be patient. They're far too intelligent and powerful. Their time will come. But for now, we have to be vigilant—we have to spend all our resources on the people who want the same thing we're after. Otherwise, this all will have been for nothing."

He nodded after a long silence. "You're right."

I brushed a strand of hair behind my ear and walked away from the shaft. "Of course I am," I said, turning around and crossing my arms. "So, are you coming, or not?"

"Lead the way," he motioned with his hand to the other side of the large, voluminous space.

"Right," I nodded and started the walk to the other side. I shrugged my shoulders, trying to reposition my quiver of arrows—there were only five or so left, and I knew for sure that I'd needed more than that. "We haven't even gotten to the real meat of the temple and I'm already low on arrows. Damn."

"'Goodness me, Nathan!'" he mimicked my voice with a stereotypical posh accent. "I'll never be able to carry that many! We can make arrows out of sticks instead!'"

I glared at him over my shoulder "First of all, I don't speak like the Queen of England. And second, you might not know this, but I've become a sort of pro at crafting and scavenging for supplies. I can manage."

"Alright," he said. "But don't come crying to me when you're out of arrows and expect me to poof some into existence with my magic wand."

"As I said, I'll manage," I repeated with emphasis, still looking behind me. "Don't take me for a helpless girl who can barely wipe her own—…are you alright?" I furrowed my brow and turned 'round to see what Nathan had stopped to look at. I followed his gaze upwards, noticing an old film projector sitting high atop some bamboo scaffolding. I turned the other direction—the direction I had been walking—and was taken aback by the long room that the stood before me. "Whoa," I breathed.

"Yeah," Nate nodded in agreement. "This must have been their place of worship; where they presented their god with gifts. "And that projector," he said, pointing back up to where we were previously looking, "is obviously a piece Indy's crew left behind."

"Hmm," I took a step back to analyze the setup. "It's probably decrepit beyond repair, and we don't have the generator power to get it up and running even if it did work. Though, I'd love to see what's on those film strips."

"Unless…" Nathan scratched his chin and started climbing one of the rotting bamboo ladders to the top of the scaffolding.

I scoffed and watched him clumsily climb the rickety ladder, awaiting his fall at any moment, ready to laugh and then immediately pretend I felt bad for him (it wouldn't have been too harsh; the projector was perched only ten or so feet high). "Unless what?"

He hoisted himself onto the wooden platform, which made all sorts of ghastly creaking sounds, and knelt down beside the projector. He examined and tinkered with it for several moments, and then began to crank the handle. "Unless it's a simple crank-operated projector." 

Much to my surprise, light flooded the dark hall as a white image projected itself onto the wall at the far end. "I'll be damned," I giggled slightly. "You actually did it."

Crackly, distorted sound began to play from the projector as the countdown began: 3… 2… 1… _beep!_

A man appeared, standing outside the temple entrance.

"Welcome, my friends, to the Temple of the Forbidden Eye! I, Sallah, shall now give you counsel to safeguard your miraculous journey."

"Oh, Sallah," I said. "I've read about him in Dr. Jones' journal."

Sallah began giving information about the vehicles that were to take passengers through the temple.

"What's the deal with those 'transports?'" Nathan asked curiously.

"I guess they were just a way to get more people through the temple at once," I said over the narration. "Once they realized they could profit from this, they wanted as many people as possible to come here."

"And then one idiot looked into the eyes and ruined it for everyone, huh?" Nathan said.

"That, or Mara got tired of being used for a business venture," I shrugged.

The rest of the safety film warned of the dangers of looking into Mara's eyes—it demonstrated that taking even a small peek could send your course directly to the 'Gates of Doom.'

"The 'Gates of Doom,' huh?" I crossed my arms as the video went black and the sound cut out. "What if…" I mumbled, my voice trailing off as I tapped my foot against the dusty ground.

"What if what?" Nathan asked, hopping down from the bamboo ladder.

I looked over to him as he landed and brushed his dirty hands off on his pants. "Oh, it's nothing," I said. "Just talking to myself."

"Like always," he joked.

I grinned narrowed my eyes. "It's an adventurer thing."


	8. Chapter 8

After passing three stone tablets that previewed the potential treasures located inside the the Chamber of Destiny, I noticed something quite remarkable. I gasped and ran up to a caged-door that blocked my entry into what looked like Dr. Jones' private office.

"Look!" I exclaimed, my hands grasping the metal that made up the cage. Inside were dozens of dusty books, some flipped open to various pages, others strewn about with pages here and there. Letters and telegrams were scattered around the desk, one dated 4 March 1936. Various other antiques and ancient relics littered shelves and tables inside the small space. "This must have been where Jones researched the temple and planned his course of action."

"Amazing…" Nate said softly. He went around to the other side and peered through the another window, which was also caged. Nate looked at the large metal lock that kept the door from opening. "I betcha I could whip that right off," he said, spinning his pistol in his hand.

"It'll be far too loud," I shook my head. "It's too risky. We don't want to draw too much attention to ourselves."

"It'll be fine," Nathan insisted, taking a piece of gear off of his belt and attaching it to the end of his pistol. "Silencer. We'll be in and out like that," he said with a snap of his fingers.

I grimaced and groaned, backing away from the door to signal him to go ahead and shoot the lock off. He squeezed the trigger, and a soft _pew_ sound came from the pistol.

"There," he said with a satisfied smirk. "Let's look around, shall we?" He tossed the lock off of the door in with a quick flick of his hand, then pulled open the door slowly. It creaked and cracked as it moved, threatening to fall apart at any second. As soon as it was open far enough, I squeezed myself inside and went straight for the desk.

I rummaged through several papers, stopping every once in a while to examine the contents. They were all printed in old typeface, very reminiscent of the 1930s. After a few more moments, I came across a letter that read "RHC" in embellished and flourishing bold print at the top.

"Hold on a second," I murmured. I held the letter closer to my eyes, reading the letter carefully. When I reached the bottom, my eyes widened as the realization hit me.

"Richard Heshingly Croft," I said slowly. "I can't believe it."

Nathan read the letter over my shoulder, my hands trembling and my breath heavy. "No way," he breathed. "This has to be from your, what, great-grandfather?"

I nodded, rereading the letter over and over. "He funded the expedition," I stammered. "He believed in Dr. Jones when nobody else did." I looked around the office and hurried over to the corner, where a picture frame stood on the far end of the desk. I grabbed the frame gently, blowing the dust off of the surface of the frame. "It's him," I said softly. "I recognize him from my father's photographs." Next to my great-grandfather was none other than Henry "Indiana" Jones.

"No way," Nathan breathed, obviously bewildered at the matters unfolding before us—I was just as surprised as he was. "So your connection to this goes all the way back to the beginning. Who would've thought?"

"Certainly not me," I said, setting the frame gently back down where I found it. "But it all makes sense now. My father was so invested in this place—the Jewel—for a reason. I can't believe Ravenwood didn't tell me about this before. That crazy bastard. He knew I'd find out; he just wanted me to find it on my own."

I turned around and faced Nathan, a confident look spread over my face. "It's here. I'm one hundred percent certain of that now. My father proved himself to me, and my great-grandfather never let him down. I know now that this is what they wanted for me to do all along—they knew I'd follow the traces soon enough. Now it's time to finish what they started."

I fingered the note from my great-grandfather as it rest in my trousers pocket, making sure it was still there after I took it from Jones' office. Nathan and I were taking cover behind a piece of a broken wall about 50 feet from the Hall of Promise that was immediately before the Chamber of Destiny. Directly above the Hall was a relief sculpture of a man, his eyes covered by a blindfold—obviously a warning to the coming encounter with the Idol of Mara. We hadn't been noticed—yet—but Trinity guards were swarming the entryway, looking everywhere for a way to gain access. Their leader, the Spanish woman, was standing with a couple of guards who looked to be of a higher rank than the other mercenaries. She watched on with intent and obvious impatience, her arms crossed and her boots tapping gently.

"You idiots!" she yelled to her men. "Croft and Drake could show up at any moment and you're over there wandering around like sheep. I want all of you to split up and search the area—there's no time for chatting. This isn't recess; you're not schoolchildren. And I did _not_ sign up to be anybody's babysitter." She flipped her hair with one hand, sighing and folding her arms back against her chest. "I can't believe I didn't get my hands on that damned journal," she said softly. That cocky Croft woman and her smartass partner Drake truly are pains in my ass."

I tried to conceal a laugh. _You're damned right we are_ , I thought. Nathan glanced at me and winked with a half-smile. "What's our plan?" I whispered to him. There were too many Trinity guards to count—I was almost certain this would end badly, but we had to get in there somehow.

"Uh, we take them out," Nathan whispered back.

"Well, obviously!" I tried to whisper-yell. "But how? There are far too many of them."

Nathan peeked his head over the top for a moment, examining the situation and trying to come up with a strategy. He came back down to a squat, his hands placed against the stone wall for support. "We're gonna have to be stealthy. They've spread out a little bit, so we can pick them off one by one until we reach the doors."

"Okay, I can do that," I nodded. Stealth was something I'd become quite good at—I thought myself a pro at sneaking up behind someone and taking them out with my bow, or various other tools—whatever did the job. "How about you go that way," I said, motioning Drake to take the right side of the room. "I'll flank the left side."

Nathan nodded. "Just don't let her spot you," he said, referring to the Spanish woman. I nodded in acknowledgement, and he left the wall in a hurry to the next piece of cover.

I peeked around the other side of the wall, and after determining that it was safe, I scurried behind a stack of cargo crates off to the left hand side of the room. I sat with my back against a crate, trying to be as still and as silent as possible. I heard footsteps approaching, my brain quickly trying to decide where they were coming from. They were definitely behind me, but which side of me was what I couldn't figure out. I pulled my bow off of my body and gripped it in my left hand firmly, ready to take action. I peered around the right side of the crate: nothing. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, then swiftly extended my right hand around the left side, instantly coming into contact with a piece of heavy material—the suit of a mercenary. I clenched my hand hard in a gist, grabbing the material tightly. I swung the guard out view behind the crate, and quickly brought my bow over his head and pulled it tight across his throat. I masked most of his choking sounds with my forearm as I pulled tighter and tighter until a soft snap sounded from his neck, and one last breath alerted me that the Trinity guard was dead. I gently laid his lifeless body onto the ground, then peeked out from behind the crate again to see if anyone had taken notice. I saw nothing, save for Nate effortlessly strangling another guard with nothing but his own arms. I narrowed my eyes and smirked—I could learn a thing or two from him.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw one of the guards turn slightly, then grip his gun tighter as he began to slowly walk in my direction.

 _Damn it!_ I thought. _He must have heard me take the other one out._

I quickly pulled myself behind the crate again, my back against the wooden surface. My knees were bent, ready to pounce on him as soon as he got close enough. I placed my hand on my combat knife, figuring it would be quicker and quieter than using my bow. The footsteps grew louder and more intense as the guard approached. In just a moment I would reach out and slice his throat with my knife, hoping to keep him from screaming and alerting the rest of them.

"Rosa!" a voice called from the distance, startling me and causing me to flinch. "Come take a look at this!"

"Damn," the woman groaned. "You! Come with me. Let's go find out what that idiot wants. I want the rest of you to stand your ground—don't let Croft _or_ Drake anywhere near the doors. I'll be back."

The guard that was approaching mere seconds ago was now heading the opposite direction, evident by the footsteps that got quieter with each step. I guessed he must have been the one Rosa picked to accompany her, wherever she was going.

"Rosa…" I whispered. I knew her by name now. _At least_ _I can say goodbye appropriately just before I kill her_ , I thought.

I peeked over the side of the crate again, and was surprised to see that the number of guards had dropped considerably—Nathan must have taken out more than me. I caught sight of him barely poking his head out from behind a one of the old troop transports that had been used to take tourists in and out of the main temple. His eyes caught mine, and he gave me a thumbs-up. I pretended to shoot an arrow with my hands, indicating that I was ready to snipe some of the bastards from afar. Nate nodded his head, and pointed to the closest guard. I pulled my bow off of my body and loaded an arrow onto the bowstring. I aimed it for the guard, holding my breath and closing one eye for a better shot. I released the arrow, and it whizzed through the air and right into the man's chest. Nate flashed a smile at me, then quickly scurried over to drag the body behind cover so nobody would find it. He yanked the arrow from the body, saving it for the next guard that he had already made his way over to. Nathan drew his arm back and stabbed the guard in the back of the throat with the arrow. He grabbed the body and wrapped his arms around the guard's mouth, masking the sounds of choking on blood.

"Brilliant," I said, eyes wide as I watched him gently lay the body down behind a stack of crates on the other side of the large room. He wiped his forehead, inadvertently spreading blood across it as he did so. I watched as he pointed to the 3 men that were left, all wandering the Hall of Promise aimlessly, trying to find a way to access the Chamber of Destiny.

He then motioned the arrow in his hand toward his head. I understood: he wanted me to take them all out at once with a headshot. I had only done something like that one or two times before, usually requiring multiple attempts to get it right. I knew that if I didn't get it right the very first time, the guards would start shooting, alerting Rosa to call in additional forces. That wouldn't be good.

I pulled out three arrows from my quiver—the last three that I had—and positioned them all at different intervals, lined up and ready to pierce the three guards right in their skulls… hopefully. My eyes found themselves looking at Nate, who was watching intently, waiting for the moment of truth. "Breathe," I heard no sound, but saw his lips say. I smiled slightly, then placed by eyes back on my three targets. As I pulled the arrow tight, I inhaled and exhaled deeply a few times, slowing my heart rate and lowering the chance of accidental movement. I took one final inhale and closed my eyes for several moments. I opened them, and opened my palm, releasing three arrows that went racing toward their prey.

I watched the arrows fly in slow motion as they sought their targets: one headshot. _Two_ headshots… and the third arrow struck a shoulder.

"No," I gasped, gripping my bow white-knuckled. I watched helplessly as the guard grabbed the arrow and pulled it out of his shoulder, regaining his balance as he stumbled backward. He raised his rifle, aiming it directly at me. I couldn't use mine, as that would alert the other guards. I couldn't fight him hand-to-hand, as he was all the way on the other side of the space. I simply stared and waited.

Then, from out of nowhere, an arrow sliced directly through the guard's eye socket, and clean to the other side of his skull. It was Nate—he had risked his life to take out the guard with the single arrow he had in his hand. I laughed, still in shock as he removed the arrow and let the body fall to the ground. His shoulders moved up and down as he breathed heavily from the attack. I swung my bow back over my shoulders and ran over to the other side of the room. As I approached him, I patted him on his back and pulled out the canteen, offering him some water.

"That was remarkable!" I said, unable to say anything else. He took the canteen from my hands and took a large drink of water. I took a rag and wiped the blood off of his face—partly there because he wiped it onto himself, but also because of the splatter from the guard he had just killed.

"Thanks," was all he said. He handed me the canteen and then reached into his jeans pocket, pulling out a set of keys. "Look what I found."

He motioned behind me, and I turned around and followed his gaze: the transport.


	9. Chapter 9

The transport keys, clipped onto one of Nate's belt loops, made a gentle jingling noise as we approached the Chamber of Destiny. I gripped my bow tightly, prepared to take out any Trinity guards with the last arrow, bloody from the guard it had just killed.

We rounded a corner and walked side-by-side as we approached three massive stone doors, then stopped a good distance away to analyze them. The doors were almost completely covered in cobwebs, obviously untouched for nearly a century.

"We have to do this quickly and quietly, before Rosa and the other guard come back," I said in a low tone. "Who knows how many more men she'll send in if she realizes we're here."

"Yeah," Nate agreed. "No promises on the 'quietly' part, though. Those doors are going to be extremely loud once we figure out how to get 'em open."

I nodded—those doors hadn't been moved for decades. I could only imagine the ungodly grinding sound they'd make. "Right. Let's do our best, then."

I approached the middle door and pushed with my entire body with as much force as possible against the dusty stone—no luck. The door wouldn't budge whatsoever, and all I managed to do was get my hands covered in black dirt and sticky cobwebs.

"Try the left one, Nate," I said as I brushed my hands off on my trousers. "I'll try the one on the right." I jogged lightly to the other door and grunted with exertion as I applied as much force to it as my body would allow, and still, nothing. Neither of the doors would move so much as an inch. "How the hell do we get these open?" I wondered, placing my hands on my hips and breathing heavily.

"Knowing old temples like this, there's probably some ridiculous puzzle to solve," Nate suggested.

"It's quite likely. Ancient cultures like this were very keen to protect their treasures. But that's part of the fun of it—solving such a puzzle is a most rewarding challenge." I slung my backpack off of my shoulders and pulled out Indy's journal once more, hoping to find a clue as to how one might open the doors. I flipped through the pages until I came upon a sketch that looked similar to the doors that stood before us. There were three distinct icons above each one of the doors, which were sketched out on the pages.

I looked at the icons in the journal, and then back up at the door. The icons had a bit of text under them, describing the fate of the explorer that chooses. "The door on the left looks like an eye—most likely the Amulet of Future Knowledge. The middle appears to be bowls of treasure—the Bowl of Earthly Riches. The rightmost door with containers of liquid is obviously the Fountain of Eternal Youth."

"Where's the 'Jewel of Power' door?" Nathan chuckled.

I laughed, too. "Oh, come on, Nathan. That would be _far_ too simple."

"They never make these things easy, do they?" Nate said and scratched his head.

"Never," I agreed with a nod. I flipped a page ahead, and there was a bit of text about mirrors. I turned around and noticed several mirrors plastered against the wall at the back of the room, exactly as the book described. "Look, over there!" I pointed and we ran over to the mirrors to examine them. Nathan instantly began running his fingers through his hair.

"Nathan!" I slapped his shoulder. "It looks lovely, now can we focus?"

"Just trying to look presentable before we meet an ancient god," he joked. He turned around and looked up at the ceiling. "Wait…" He jogged back to the center of the room.

"Hmm?" I said, still studying Jones' writing.

"Come here," Nathan said, pointing to a hole in the ceiling. "Look. There's light coming from there."

"Huh," I said, closing the journal and sticking it in my backpack. I looked back at the mirrors, trying to get a different view of the room. "Now this is interesting: light and mirrors."

"I've seen something like this before, when I was in a Nepalese Temple," Nate said, his eyes running from the ray of light to the mirrors, and then back to the doors. "In order to progress, I had to use several mirrors to refract rays of light in certain directions." He began pacing, trying to come up with a plan. "This seems pretty similar, but I don't see another mirr— whoa!"

"What?" I whipped my head around and saw Nathan frozen, looking down at his feet.

"I appear to have found a pressure plate." Nate said with a nervous laugh.

I pulled out my glow stick and examined the floor, and soon found another pressure plate adjacent to the one Nathan was standing on. "Yes you have… Don't move," I said, stepping onto it.

"Wasn't plannin' on it," Nathan said.

As soon as the plate took the force of my weight, a hole in the ground opened. Out of it rose a glimmering, gold-plated mirror that was situated directly below the beam of light.

"Perfect!" I said eagerly.

"Well, would you look at that," Nathan said, dumbfounded. "I solved the puzzle."

I rolled my eyes and stepped off the pressure plate to go examine the new mirror, but as soon I did, the mirror sank quickly back into the ground. "Shit," I whispered. I pulled my backpack off from my shoulders and tossed it onto the plate. Once more, the mirror emerged from below. As I approached the small mirror, I noticed a handle on the back. I grabbed the handle, and then angled the mirror so that the glass would catch the beam of light and refract it onto the larger mirror at the back of the room. Suddenly, the beam shot toward the doors.

"Sweet!" Nathan called from the other side of the room, using his arm to shade his eyes from the strong beam. "Now just try angling it so it illuminates the face of Mara above the 'Treasures' door."

"Right!" I called back to him.

" _They're here!_ " a voice called from a distance.

My heart dropped as the sound of running footsteps and yelling sounded: Trinity had found us.

"Oh… _crap_!" Nathan yelled, his body gearing up for a fight or flight response. "Lara! We gotta hurry!

"I'm going!" I yelled back to him. "Shit! Just need to move this thing… a little… higher!"

My shaking hands made it difficult, but I moved the mirror slightly and looked behind me to see where the beam was aiming. With a bit of adjustment, the beam shone directly on the face, and it began to glow with a brilliant golden light. "I think that did it!"

I let go of the mirror and turned around to watch the doors open inward. The doors themselves shone gold, too, and light twinkled down from the bowls of treasure, like magic dust was enchanting the doors. The two doors began to part slowly, and a low, ominous voice echoed throughout the chamber:

" _You seek the treasure of Mara, glittering gold… It is yours."_

I turned back around and immediately ran toward Nathan. "Throw me those keys!" I yelled. He didn't hesitate—he unclipped the keys from his belt loop and tossed them to me as I ran past him and made a mad dash for the transport.

"What are you doing?" Nathan called to me as I ran out into the large room.

"Trust me!" I called over my shoulder. "And cover me!"

Nathan whipped out the pistol he'd taken from one of the dead Trinity guards and aimed it out into the room. I ducked behind the side of the old transport as the guards swarmed into the room. Shots rang out as Nathan picked off several of them, and they dropped to the floor. _Nice aim_ , I thought. I readied the keys and climbed into the front seat of the transport, doing my best to stay as close to the floor of the vehicle as possible. I peeked over the steering wheel and saw one remaining guard entering the room from the far right side. He was heading in Nathan's direction. The guard approached the Chamber, and Nathan stood his ground, probably earful that stepping off the pressure plate would cause the doors to close. He held up his pistol and aimed for the guard, then pulled the trigger.

 _Click_.

"Shit!" I whispered, almost silently.

The guard laughed from under his helmet, raising his gun, ready to shoot Nathan directly in the forehead. Nathan closed his eyes, preparing for the worst, until I placed the key into the ignition and turned it. Nathan opened his eyes again, and saw that the guard had turned around, curious about the vehicle that was seemingly starting up by itself. Nathan took the opportunity to knock the guard out with his pistol, then grabbed his machine gun.

Finally, the engine turned over, and I put the gearshift into 'drive.'

"Let's see what this old thing can do," I said to myself.

"I need backup!" a voice yelled from behind me. "Send all of them!"

I whipped my head around to see Rosa charging directly toward me. I quickly threw the gearshift into 'reverse' and stomped on the gas pedal. I watched in the rearview mirror as Rosa's eyes widened, and then she disappeared out of view as she jumped out of the vehicle's path at the last second.

"Damn you!" she screeched as she scurried to stand up.

"Go to hell!" I growled. "Nathan!" I yelled to him. He was aiming the machine gun toward Rosa, unable to get a good shot on her. "Grab the backpack!"

Nathan nodded, and slung the gun's strap around his body, then hurried over to the other pressure plate grab the backpack.

I threw the transport into 'drive,' flooring the gas pedal and speeding directly toward the Chamber. Dozens of Trinity guards appeared from both sides, rushing into the room to stop Nathan and I. I ducked to dodge the gunfire that was now enveloping me, the metallic clangs ringing from bullets that bounced off the thick metal body of the transport. Nathan was taking out as many guards as he could with his machine gun, standing ready to jump onto the speeding vehicle.

"Get ready!" I yelled out to him. I slowed slightly as I approached Nathan, giving him enough time to hop into the vehicle. I grabbed his hand with one of mine, the other keeping a death grip on the steering wheel. He clumsily clambered into the transport, dropping the backpack onto the floor, then quickly aiming the gun behind us in an attempt to take out a few more guards. I rounded the corner into the chamber rather hastily, throwing Nate off balance and slamming him against the side of the transport.

"Crap!" he groaned, quickly regaining his balance. "Easy on the curves!"

"Sorry!" I yelled over the roar of gunfire and an 80-year-old engine. "Hold on—we're going in!"

I stomped onto the pedal again, running right over the gold-plated mirror. The doors to the Hall of Promise were closing, and closing fast—we'd taken too long to pass through.

"Here we go!" I shouted. "Don't… Look… Into the eyes!"

"I'm too busy focusing on the guys behind us!" Nathan called. "But thanks for the advice!"

The transport sped through the closing doors, passing through right before the doors slammed shut. But just before they did, I glanced into my rearview mirror and saw Rosa standing in the Chamber of Destiny, her eyes wide, her mouth open—she was in a trance.

"No!" I whispered.

" _Foolish mortals! You looked into my eyes. Your destiny now lies beyond the Gates of Doom!"_


	10. Chapter 10

_So much for not looking into the eyes_ , I thought, wincing as the transport lurched its way upward toward the idol of Mara.

"What the hell just happened?" Nathan called over the engine, his heaving breaths slowing. He lowered his gun and turned around, then carefully climbed over the seats to sit next to me. The transport was arranged with three rows of four seats, designed for carrying troops into battle—or, in this case, shuttling tourists into the Temple of the Forbidden Eye.

"That bitch looked into the eyes," I yelled back. The deafening sound of ancient rock breaking from the idol's face drowned out my words. I tried to steer the transport, but the steering wheel was locked—it was moving on its own accord, or, by the accord of Mara. A dark, blood-like liquid began seeping out of the idol's eyes and dripping down its face

"Uh…" Nathan said, his voice covered with concern. "Shouldn't we, you know, try to get away from that thing?"

I glared at him and pulled my hands off the steering wheel. "What do you think I've been trying to do? The damned thing's driving itself!"

The transport came to a sudden halt right in front of the giant face of Mara, which was now almost completely in ruins. Nathan and I looked up at it, and our eyes widened with both awe and fear. There was no way of knowing what could possibly happen next. My hands gripped the steering wheel again, my knuckles turning white. No matter how much force I applied, the wheel wouldn't budge. The vehicle lurched left suddenly, and before us stood a bright hallway that was lined with various pots, vases, and treasures. I tried to accelerate toward it, but the pedals were frozen in place, too. The transport rounded left into a different passageway, but this one was dark and ominous. Towering stone vipers lined the hallway; bolts of electricity surged through the walls on both sides of us. Pieces of the floor began to give way, revealing a blackness that went on for god knows how long.

"Lara!?" Nathan yelled, leaning over the edge of the transport and looking down at the crumbling floor. "We're gonna be dead in about three seconds if you don't get us out of here!"

"Do you want to try driving this thing? " I grunted as the transport shook violently, threatening to fall into the abyss at any moment. "There's some sort of force surrounding the vehicle that's preventing me from controlling it. I can't steer, and I can't brake or accelerate. I can't do anything!"

"Then how about we abandon ship and make a run for it?" Nathan suggested.

"And plummet straight into the bottomless pit." I shook my head.

"And you've got a better idea?" Nathan countered.

I ignored him. The transport shook, a little less this time, then stopped suddenly. It now faced directly toward two large double doors from which a pale, green light emerged. A foggy, smoke-like substance began seeping out from beneath the doors, and they began shaking quickly, threatening to burst open at any moment. The doors then flew open as green light emanated from behind them, illuminating the electrified hallway. Out of my control, the transport began inching its way toward the still-closed doors.

"' _Your path now leads to the Gates of Doom..._ '" Nathan said, quoting the voice we heard just moments ago. He gripped a bar in front of him tightly. "The energy from behind those doors has to be what's controlling the car. I got it!" he said confidently. He scooted over to the right side of the transport and carefully eased himself over the edge, peering down at the cracking stone beneath him.

"What are you doing?" I said, my mouth agape and my eyebrows raised. "You'll get yourself killed!"

"Doing this will probably get _me_ killed," he yelled over his shoulder. "But doing nothing will definitely get _both of us_ killed."

He was right—we had to do something, and quickly. I grimaced, but I trusted him, nodding to signal agreement. I had no idea what his plan was, but I desperately hoped that whatever it was would work. My palms were dripping with sweat from my deadlock grip on the steering wheel; I watched nervously as Nate hopped down from the transport and made a b-line toward the doors. He hopped over cracking pieces of stone, narrowly escaping death with every jump—there was a sort of clumsy finesse that he displayed as he moved. He reached the doors and slammed his shoulder against them, keeping them shut with all the force he could muster

 _That's your plan?!_ I thought. He'd have to let go sooner or later; his body was no match for the strength of a god. The transport jolted and stopped progressing toward the doors—shutting the doors removed the force that possessed the vehicle, allowing me to regain control once more. I tapped on the gas lightly, the car lurching forward in response.

"That did it!" I yelled over to him. "We need to get out of here or the ceiling will come down on us, too!"

Nate shook his head, sweat visibly dripping from it. The doors were pushing back against Nathan relentlessly, making me wonder how in the world he was able to keep them shut. "Go! I'll catch up with you."

"I can't leave you behind!" I shouted. "There's no way we'll find each other!"

"Just go!" he yelled again. "Up to the left! That looks like the only way out." There was no use in arguing as the walls began collapsing around us, so I nodded, my face displaying mix of worry and guilt.

I gassed the accelerator and spun the wheel, traveling upward before rounding a sharp corner to the left. I relied on the dim headlights to guide me through the darkness as I traversed a narrow passageway. The transport's nearly century-old suspension caused me to feel every rock and divot I drove over; I came out of my seat several times as I bumped along the rough terrain. Suddenly, the full scope of the temple revealed itself to me: a massive stone effigy of the idol Mara lay on the opposite side of the vast interior, a flame swirling where the left eye should have been. The chamber glowed orange and red, the flicker of fire warned of danger below.

I eased the transport forward, unsure of which direction I should take. The car shook violently as it drove down a large flight of stairs, but never once did I break eye contact with the effigy of Mara. The flame danced in her eye, swirling like a tornado of fire. It called to me, drew me toward her. In my trance, I almost forgot that mere feet were standing between my transport and a fiery death. Out of the flame came a large beam of green energy—a laser, it appeared to be—and blasted the stone wall directly to my right.

"Shit!" I screamed as blocks of rubble broke away from the wall and hit the transport. I winced as a piece of stone grazed against my cheek, reaching my hand up and feeling blood. I floored the gas pedal, then braked just as quickly as the transport reached a ledge. The tires skid to a screeching halt, the transport's chassis tilted forward slightly. I quickly threw it into reverse and backed up as pieces of rock began to give way from underneath the balding rubber tires. The green beam fired once more, this time making contact with the ceiling directly above me, sending dozens of rocks falling into the massive pit of fire and molten lava down below. My head whipped upward as I saw the pieces of rock falling directly above me, and would likely crush me. I stomped on the gas again, this time turning the steering wheel furiously to the left. I glanced backward as I saw pieces of rubble land directly on the spot where the car and I had been. The rocks landed with several loud thuds, some of them sliding down the ledge and into the pit, about to be devoured by the immense heat.

The transport stuttered as I took a hard-left turn into a dark, cavernous tunnel. I eased on the gas as I entered it, my headlights again being my only source of light. I drove for a few moments until I could be sure that I was in the clear, free from whatever was trying to kill me back there. I threw the gear into 'park' and rested my head on the steering wheel. The sputtering of the idling engine was the only sound that accompanied the sound of my lungs deeply inhaling and exhaling, my breathing still heavy from the prior brush with death. My breaths soon slowed and my heartbeat returned to its resting rate. _At least I'm safe from that damn laser of death_ I thought. _That bitch Mara really wants me dead, doesn't she?_ My thoughts switched from concern of my own life to Nathan's, and I instantly felt guilty. He could easily have been dead by this time, and it would have been entirely my fault, but the optimist in me led me to believe that he wasn't—if there was any way of escaping certain death, he'd find it.

I looked at the fuel gauge, which read halfway full. I reached for the ignition and turned the key, killing the engine. I decided to wait there for the moment, conserving precious petrol and giving Nathan time to catch up with me. I hoped he'd be able to find me in the darkness somehow, but there was no way for him to tell which way I'd gone. My cheek throbbed, and I remembered that falling debris created a gash in my cheek. I winced softly, touching my fingers to the wound again. I didn't feel as much blood as before, which was a good sign—the injury was minimal. I reached into the pouch in front of me (a convenient compartment for keeping personal belongings safe) and pulled out my backpack. The lack of light made it difficult to find what I was looking for, but I quickly found a medi-kit and felt around for some gauze and rubbing alcohol. I dipped the gauze in the alcohol and gently dabbed my cheek, the alcohol stinging as it seeped into the open flesh. I twitched away from the gauze, the searing pain momentarily making me wince, but kept dabbing as best I could—I'd learned a hard lesson about keeping wounds clean on Yamatai, and I had the nasty scars to show for it.

Oh, Yamatai. I laughed ironically to myself as I remembered the madness I'd encountered on that island just a few years prior. I thought of simpler times when I could explore ruins and temples without floors collapsing and vengeful gods trying to kill me. I figured I should be used to things like that now, given the number of times it's happened to me now, but somehow it felt like that sort of lifestyle would never be accepted as normal.

After spending several minutes inside my head, I began to feel myself nodding off and my eyelids drooping; I had lost track of how long it had been since I'd last slept. The darkness' effect on my brain was beginning to take over, my body becoming limp and my head falling to rest on the steering wheel. _I'll just take a quick power nap_ , I thought. _Just... a little... nap._

"Lara!" a soft voice whispered.

My eyes shot open, my head snapped upward. "Huh?" I muttered, still very much draped under the veil of sleep. I blinked rapidly, my eyes burning from sleep deprivation. I rubbed my eyes with the backs of my hands, trying to wake myself up. I looked around me and remembered that there was nearly no light where I was, so I fished around in my backpack for a torch. I pulled it out and switched it on, the light illuminating the damp, craggy walls of the cavern.

"Who is it?" I questioned softly. I darted the torch this way and that, trying to find the source of the mysterious voice, but there was no one else there. I began to feel a little uneasy, as disembodied voices in dark places usually don't end well.

"This way," it whispered again. It sounded vaguely familiar, but I couldn't place my finger on who—or what—the voice belonged to.

I sighed and decided to go investigate. I slung my backpack over my shoulders and hopped out of the transport, clumsily landing on the ground. The drop to the ground was several feet; I let out a soft grunt as my feet hit the dusty surface. I stood up straight, brushing hands against my thighs and aiming my torch ahead of me. I began to walk forward slowly and with hesitance, unsure of what I might find when I reached the source of the voice. My footsteps, tiredly shuffling and dragging along the floor, caused soft crunching sounds as they brushed against the rocky floor of the tunnel.

"Why is it that I always seem to find myself alone in dark caves?" I muttered to myself and snickered, amused at what my daily life now consisted of. My torch shone on various items: broken pottery, various relics, and other ancient objects. But the most prominent were dozens, if not hundreds, of decaying skeletons. They littered the sides of the cavern, none of them completely intact. Some were propped up against the walls, whilst others were in pieces on the ground; that explained the crunching sounds as the aging bones cracked and crumbled under my weight.

"Just like the catacombs…" I mumbled, recalling my recent trip to the catacombs in France, where maze-like tunnels underground are lined with skeletons for miles—it was a creepy place, not much unlike this one, that housed several haunting stories and secrets. I wondered what sort of secrets this place was hiding from me.

"Lara…" the voice whispered once again. I kept following it, still trying to locate the source of the voice with my torch. I looked behind me every so often, making sure nothing was following me. I don't know why I thought I was being followed, though, as the only sounds were my footsteps and the occasional flutter of bat wings.

I turned back 'round and nearly jumped out of my skin—the silhouette of a human figure was plainly visible just ahead.

"Oh, shit!" I instinctively reached for my axe, though I didn't immediately pull it out. In my sudden surprise, I'd dropped my torch on the ground, so I knelt down slowly and felt around for it. My hands brushed against dozens of bone fragments, creating a faint rattling sound as they clattered together. My fingers finally recognized the cold, metal handle of the torch, so I grasped it in my hand tightly as I returned to standing. I shone the light first at the figure's feet: dusty, brown combat boots. Then, the legs: brown trousers with two black holsters around the thighs. My heart began racing as I began to piece together who was standing before me. My torch scanned the figure more quickly now, until it finally shone upon the figure's face.

"Roth?" I stammered, my mouth agape. I shone the light directly into his eyes and he squinted away. "S-sorry," I said, lowering the torch.

He chuckled. "It's good to see you, girl," Roth said in a low, gravelly voice. His Yorkshire accent rang true, and his voice sounded exactly as I remembered it: strong, confident, yet empathetic and compassionate. "You look like hell."

"And I feel it," I laughed. "These ancient ruins aren't so kind to me."

He smiled slightly. "I know why you're here, and I want to help."

"But… how?" I shook my head. I couldn't fathom how Roth was here, standing before me, when I had watched him die years ago on Yamatai. I had sobbed against his lifeless body, then stood alongside the rest of the crew into the night as we watched it burn.

"It'll make sense soon enough," Roth said, taking a step closer.

Instinctively, I took a step backward, feeling a bit uneasy; any sane person would do the same should a dead person walk toward them. His face softened, the wrinkles lessened. In the darkness, he looked every bit the same as I remembered him.

"You're after the Jewel," he said knowingly. "That's the only reason you'd be here, isn't it?"

I nodded slowly. My brow furrowed and my eyelids blinked several times involuntarily. How could he have known this? "Yes. But nobody ever came close to finding it. Not even Dr. Jones, and... not even dad."

"Ah," Roth said, holding up his index finger. "That's where you're mistaken, Lara. Jones may not have found the Jewel, and neither did Richard, but they had a solid idea of where it might be."

"And… where's that?" I cocked my head slightly to the side. I was still trying to understand how Roth got here, let alone how he could possibly know the whereabouts of the Jewel.

"Look into the eyes," Roth's voice said slowly.

"What?" I shook my head, trying to make sense of that statement. I'd drilled into my mind this entire time _not_ to look into the eyes; in fact, looking into the eyes was what got me into this mess in the first place. Now my father's dead best friend wants to tell me to ignore that? Throw it out the window? I shook my head again. "No, that's wrong. It... it makes no sense."

He began repeating that phrase over and over as he began retreating backwards into the darkness. His figure disappeared, and his voice was barely audible. "Look… into… the eyes…"

"Roth!" I called for him, starting to run after him as he faded away.

 _"_ _Look into my eyes, Lara!_ "

"Huh?!" I jolted upright, my heart pounding and adrenaline coursing through my veins. Nathan's face was mere inches from mine; he was so close that I could see his pupils, fully dilated in the darkness.

"Oh, thank god," Nathan sighed with relief, slumping back into the transport seat next to me. "I thought you were dead. I shook you for a good minute until you came to. You know, it's probably safe to say that you're the reason I have high blood pressure."

I blinked a couple times and rubbed my eyes, drowsiness still enveloping me. "I guess I was just… exhausted."

"You and me both," Nathan yawned. "We've been running around this place for... god, I can't even tell how long it's been. Maybe we should rest up here. I'm beat."

"Mm," I said in agreement. My mind shifted back to Roth, who had been standing before me just seconds ago, telling me to 'look into the eyes.' _A dream,_ I thought to myself with a sigh. _Crazy old man. Just my subconscious projecting itself onto my dead friends again. Nothing new._ Dreams involving Roth and the other deceased _Endurance_ crew weren't uncommon. They had lessened as time went on and I learned to live with their deaths, but it was no abnormality to have Roth, Alex, Grim or Whitman pop up in my dreams every now and then; sometimes they'd all show up at once. Those nights are fun. I turned to Nathan, who was slumped back in his seat, about ready to fall asleep.

"Nate?" I said quietly. His eyes opened slowly, and his head turned to face me.

"What's up?" Nathan said, followed by another large yawn.

"How did you get out of there? Away from The Gates?"

He scratched his head and sat up. "I guess I just have a knack for navigating collapsing floors," he said with a soft laugh. "Actually, I wedged my gun through the handles of the doors, which kept them closed for a moment, buying me some time. Then it was just a hop, skip, and a jump across a crumbling floor with a scary black abyss beneath it, and then I dodged some rocks falling from the ceiling, and then I was finally in the clear. No biggie. But... no gun."

I smiled. I felt guilty about leaving him behind to fend for himself. Despite worrying about him the entire time, something in the back of my mind knew he'd find a way out. He always does. "I'm glad you're safe, Nathan."

He put his arm around my shoulder and grinned. "So am I. And I'm glad _you're_ not dead, either. Gonna give me a heart attack one of these days," he grumbled teasingly.

"You know I can't die that easily," I laughed. "Have a little more faith in me, will you?"


	11. Chapter 11

I awoke what felt like days (though I knew it was probably just hours) later, feeling groggy and unaware of my surroundings. I panicked for a moment, forgetting that I was resting deep within the depths of an ancient temple in the heart of India. I felt slightly more rested that I did prior to sleeping, but I knew I wouldn't feel fully energized until I'd gotten back to my daily life in London. Even then, I hadn't had a good night's sleep in ages.

I stretched my arms above my head, letting out a large yawn. My eyes would usually water after a large yawn like that, but I was so exhausted that my eyes felt like they were perpetually dry—I'd gotten used to the burning by this point. Nate was still knocked out beside me, snoring as his chest rose gently with each breath.

 _Oh, Nathan,_ I thought, feeling the slightest bit guilty for getting him into this mess. I knew he'd been in worse before, but part of me couldn't help but feel bad for prolonging his exposure to these sorts of things. Sooner or later, he'd have to get fed up, wouldn't he? He looked quite peaceful; his expression was blank, but his face was lined with almost a decade's worth of age and experience more than me. And yet, a sense of youth remained. Perhaps it was his childish jokes or his rambunctious outlook. He was role model. I looked up to him almost as much as I looked up to my own father, yet I viewed him in a different light. Of course, there was the romantic thing we'd had years prior, but he was happily married to Elena, and I knew it wasn't for me, anyway. I didn't ask him to come along on this adventure simply because I hoped he'd fall in love with me, but rather because he was the one person in the world I could count on; he was the one person who can relate to my lifestyle, and the one person who never thought I was crazy for what I had been through. He understood.

I smiled, still studying Nate's peaceful, resting face in the soft glow of the headlights—I switched the lights off, remembering that conserving battery power was crucial. I decided I'd let him rest a little bit longer; he needed sleep as badly as I did. I sat in silence for a moment, then reached into the pouch in front of me to find my backpack. I pulled it out, unzipped it, and pulled out Jones' journal and my torch, difficult as hell in the darkness of the cavern.

With the press of a button the torch flickered on, then back off again. "Dammit…" I whispered, giving it a couple gentle slaps against the palm of my hand. "Work, will you?" Apparently, gentle taps weren't enough. I slapped it with a little force and it flickered to life again. I held my breath, watching the light for a few seconds. Once I was certain it wasn't going to die on me, I flipped the journal open to a page that looked close to where we were.

"Caverns," I said softly aloud. I stopped at a two-page spread that was covered with a sketch of the Idol Mara, a laser beam firing out of its eye and striking a large, rope bridge at its suspensions. "That must have been what caused the ceiling above me to collapse… but how can that be possible?" I shook the doubt out of my head, remembering that questioning the supernatural at this point was pointless. So much had happened that _shouldn't_ have happened, and I couldn't help but question _how._

 _Gurgle!_

 _Ugh. You really_ _need to eat, girl,_ I thought to myself, pressing my hand against my rumbling stomach. I shined the torch into my backpack, fishing around for a snack. "Aha!" I whispered eagerly as I found the pack of Jaffa Cakes that I made sure to bring with me—they were my absolute favorite treat. I quietly pulled one out and chewed on it gently, savoring the sweet, tangy orange flavor.

It baffled me how such a simple thing like a pastry could take one back in time, bringing forth memories that had previously been buried for ages. This one reminded me of when I first met Sam. We were dorm-mates during our freshman year at University College London, moving our belongings into the tiny room (more like a prison cell) and awkwardly waiting for the other to break the ice. I remember glancing over to Sam's side of the room, chuckling as I watched her try to arrange all her things into her side of the room; she packed like she was moving into an upscale studio apartment rather than a dormitory.

I sat on my bed, chewing softly as I watched the rich girl desperately rearrange her side gain and again.

 _What are those?_ Sam's voice echoed through my thoughts.

 _Jaffa Cakes!_ Came my response. _You ever had one?_

She shook her head, her short, black hair waving with the motion.

 _Okay then, you've got to try one. Here, take a piece._

She cautiously slid one into her mouth and started to chew. _I can't tell if I love it… or hate it_.

 _Oh, come on! You've got to love it,_ I laughed.

She laughed in response, swallowing the piece with a grimace painted onto her face. _Okay, I tried your thing. Tomorrow, you try mine._

 _Which is…?_

 _We're going clubbing,_ Sam said with a sly smirk.

Her laugh was unforgettable. We'd been through so much together, but after what happened to her on Yamatai, it was clear to me that she'd never be the same again. No matter how much I tried to get her back, she would never quite lose her grasp of Yamatai—or, rather, Yamatai wouldn't release its grasp of Sam. I closed my eyes and memories of our shenanigans and adventures came rushing back to me. Our hike up Kilamanjaro, our trip to China—even the late nights when she'd drag me out to the nightlife scene against my will, hoping to find boys for us to mess with. I missed everything, and more importantly, I missed my best friend.

 _Crunch!_

I snapped out of my daydream and back into reality. I quickly aimed the torch in the direction the sound had come from. "Hello?" I called softly. I glanced over at Nate—still asleep. My brow furrowed and my hand moved the light in every direction, hoping to catch a glimpse of something. What had been the sound of bats quietly chirping and water dripping from stalactites was now replaced with the eerie sound of nothingness. I rubbed my eyes, trying to reassure myself that I was awake. I wasn't dreaming this time. I shook my head and brought the light of the torch back down to the journal—it was probably just a small animal, or the immense sleep deprivation taking its toll on my mind.

Then came the sound of something hard gently and irregularly clanging against another hard object. After my recent nightmare, I was a bit on edge with eerie sounds in this cave. I'd usually brush off something like that and blame it on wind or rats, as was typical of places like this, but anxiety began building within me. I ran my fingers through my fringe, taking a deep breath inward, then exhaling slowly. I closed the journal and placed it back in my backpack, but kept the torch in hand, grasping it with a white-knuckled grip.

Taking only the torch with me, I carefully slid myself down and out of the transport, once again landing onto the dusty surface below, for real this time—I made myself quite aware that this wasn't a dream. I stopped to listen for a moment in the darkness, trying to determine the exact location of the sound. One second, the sound was coming from a few meters ahead of me. The next, the clanging sounded as if it was much farther away.

I continued slowly, running may hands against the side of the wall so I could feel where I was going. I came across a small alcove in the rock wall and clicked the torch on, aiming the light at my feet: a large wooden crate sat begging to be opened. "What's this?" I mumbled aloud. With one hand, I prized the crate open. I set the torch down next to the crate so I could use both arms; the weight of the lid as heavier than I was expecting. Inside were two identical Heckler & Koch USP Match pistols and a few rounds of ammunition.

"Well, this is awfully convenient, isn't it?" I mumbled again. I set the torch on the ground so I could take the pistols and ammo, sticking one in a holster on either of my thighs. I placed the pistol rounds in my pockets and then reached for the torch.

A flash of red caught my eye, so, furrowing my brow and squinting my eyes, I tried to make out a design on the side of the crate that was barely visible in the glow of the torch. "It couldn't be… could it?" I breathed. I hastily grabbed for the torch, fumbling to hold it steady in my hand that was now trembling—the fight or flight response was kicking in. I shone the light directly onto the side of the crate, allowing me to see clearly a black symbol with three points and a red background; there was no mistaking this insignia.

 _They're already inside,_ I thought, my brain panicking at the realization. _They're two steps ahead of me._

"Trinity."

I stood up and turned around quickly, but suddenly was unable to move. I was paralyzed with both fear and confusion as my torch illuminated something grotesque: a full human skeleton standing before me. My heart accelerated, and as the skeleton began to step toward me, I took a step back. I could only step back so far, though, as my back was soon flat against the cavern wall. I reached to my side and grasped for my climbing axe, whipping it out and taking a heavy swing at the skeleton's head, letting out a loud groan as I did so. The skull flew off the rest of the body, and rolled downhill into darkness. I let out a deep exhale, then began at a quick run back toward where I'd left the transport just minutes earlier.

The journey back seemed longer than before; no matter how far I ran, I couldn't find the transport, or Nate.

"Nathan!" I called, cupping my hands around my mouth. My voice echoed throughout the caverns, bouncing against the rock walls. I didn't care if I woke him now, so long as I could find him again.

The sound of silence was the only response I got.

"Shit!" I said, frustrated. I squeezed the bridge of my nose between my eyes, trying to prevent the headache I could feel forming; stress, dehydration and sleep deprivation were beginning to take a toll on me. Perhaps I had just been hallucinating moments ago; perhaps the living skeleton was just the lack of sleep beginning to take effect. That was probably it, but after what I'd seen thus far, nothing was out of the question.

 _Crack! Snap!_

My brow furrowed and my eyes darted left and right as the sounds of wooden boxes opening surrounded me on all sides. I reluctantly raised the torch upward, following the light from the ground and slowly up toward the wall. Wooden crates—dozens of them—were beginning to crack open, the wooden nails that were holding them closed popped out and fell to the ground. I narrowed my eyes and I tried to make out what was coming out one of the boxes: skeletal fingers reached out from inside, grasping the sides of the box as the lid was forced outward and landed at my feet. I took a step back, staring at the wooden lid that almost hit me. I then refocused on the box, where another full human skeleton was clamoring out clumsily. I shined the torch in every direction around me, my heartrate and breathing rapidly increasing as I saw the same thing happening tenfold: boxes of various shapes and sizes were bursting open and skeletons were climbing out of each one.

I took off at a run in no specific direction, simply with the intention of getting away from the bony bastards. Dozens—no, hundreds of them surrounded me, and they were all coming toward me with frightening speed. These were much faster than the first one I'd encountered just moments ago. I leveled the torch with my head and readied my axe, swinging at any skeleton that stood in front of me as I ran. The awful sound of the metal axe against the ancient bone sent a chill down my spine, but I pressed on.

The torch flickered for a moment until the batteries finally died. No matter how much I pounded it against my leg, it refused to come back to life.

"No, no, no!" I said quickly. Despite the darkness, I could still hear bone clanging against the rocky ground, so I knew there were still many more skeletons ahead of me. I stuck the torch in my back pocket and continued running, swinging my axe blindly with the hope that I'd at least take out some of the skeletons.

A faint glow appeared several hundred feet ahead of me, illuminating the rocky cavern. I skidded to a halt, watching as the shadows cast on the rock walls moved quickly—that meant the light source was moving, too, and fast. Suddenly, the light rounded a corner, and I winced as I covered my face from the blinding brightness. As my eyes adjusted, I realized that the light source had diverged into two bright lights: it was the transport.

I left out a soft laugh, watching as the transport mowed down hundreds of skeletons and various bones flew in every direction. The transport came to a screeching halt, stopping just inches in front of me. I covered my face again until the blinding headlights were turned off, along with the engine. I couldn't see a thing once again.

"Jeez, Nate," I laughed, bending down and putting my hands on my knees, trying to catch my breath. "Haven't you any respect for the dead?" I stood upright again, then went around the right side of the transport, my hands running across the body of the vehicle so I could feel where I was going. I found the opening where the seats were, so I swung my leg up and hoisted myself into the seat, buckling the seatbelt. "Let's get going. Going by Jones' journal, the caverns ahead lead to the rope bridge."

"I know. We've already gotten that far, Lara. But it would that _you_ haven't."

 _That's not Nate,_ I thought, panicking. _That's…_

 _Rosa._


	12. Chapter 12

_God, my head…_ That was the first thing that came to my mind as I came to. I struggled to open my eyes, my vision blurry and fading in and out. I groaned, my head throbbing heavily with pain. I tried to rub my forehead, where the pain was at its greatest, but I couldn't—my hands were bound together and secured to the handlebar in front of me. The bastards must have knocked me out as soon as I sat down. I should have been more careful.

Although my vision wasn't the clearest, I could tell that some light was present—I could barely make out the crags and indents of the rocky walls around us. I grunted and wriggled in my seat, trying to free myself from the bindings.

"Now, Lara," said the woman in her thick Spanish accent. I turned my head slowly to the left, my aching neck making any sort of motion difficult, and saw Rosa sitting two seats away from me beside one of her mercenaries who was driving the transport. "You would be wise not to try and escape. It wouldn't end well for you."

"Go to hell," I spat through a bloodied mouth, but just as I finished speaking, the butt of a rifle rammed the back of my head. I let out of a loud groan, wincing from the pain, mentally cursing my inability to fight back.

She chuckled smugly, her rose-red lips curling over her teeth; she seemed to take pleasure in my helplessness. "It would appear we've already reached that destination, wouldn't it?"

Her men did a real number on me, but I must have put up a good fight—a simple blow to the head wouldn't have left me this battered. I tried, unsuccessfully, to blow my fringe out of my face. I lowered my head, trying to think of how the hell I was going to get out of this situation.

The transport bumped and rocked as it traversed along the rocky path. We were still inside the cavernous tunnels, but I assumed we must have been getting close to reentering the main portion of the temple: vases, pots, and Marabic lettering began appearing more frequently. The sound of ceramic pottery breaking echoed throughout the caverns as the transport ran them over without remorse.

My head shot up as I realized I had no idea where my partner in crime was. I hadn't heard him speak, so I thought perhaps he was just knocked out in the one of the rows of seats behind me. I strained, turning my neck as far as the pain would allow it, but there was no sign of him. "Where's—"

"Not here," Rosa interrupted, knowing what I was going to ask before I asked it. "And you won't see him again."

"What did you do to him?" I said threateningly. My lips curled upward, my eyebrows furrowed. If my hands weren't bound together, I'd have delivered Rosa's arse straight into the hands of Mara. "If you hurt him, I swear to god…!"

"Don't be stupid," she scoffed. "We haven't killed him—yet. Drake's a big boy. He can handle a few fists to the face."

"What's the point?" I questioned. I was fuming, wanting with every fiber of my being to kill these sons of bitches and find Nathan. He'd been in worse situations before, surely, but I couldn't help feeling like it was my fault we were separated.

"The point of what?" Rosa said, sounding uninterested.

"Taking us to… wherever you're taking us," I mumbled. "Why not just kill us now and get it over with?"

Rosa laughed softly, her black hair bouncing gently as the transport bumped over the rugged terrain. "You're not entirely useless. Once you help us locate the Jewel, then we kill you."

I squinted through strands of my fringe that dangled in front of my line of sight. "But you've got the journal," I said regretfully, loathing the fact that I'd lost possession of it. "What more could you possibly want from us?"

She snarled, her upper lip raising slightly. "We don't have that damned journal."

 _…_ _What?_ I looked to my right to conceal the smirk that crawled across my face—a smirk that was growing into a smile. _Nathan managed to hide the journal?_ I felt the slightest bit relieved, knowing that we still had a shot to beat these bastards. I didn't know how we'd escape this time, but we always did. We were still at a disadvantage, though, with me tied up and Nathan being god-knows-where.

"Then… you want _what_ from us, exactly?" I asked again, though I knew exactly what her answer would be.

"Don't play stupid, girl," she snarled again. "You're the next best thing we have to that journal, and since we don't have it, you're going to help us find what we're looking for."

"What the hell makes you think I'd ever help the likes of you? Of Trinity?" I said coldly. "I've seen what you do. You'd stop at nothing to gain control of the world, even if it means killing innocent people or destroying remnants of history in the process. I'm an archaeologist—I don't destroy history. I preserve it."

Rosa laughed wickedly. I glared at her, wanting desperately to knock that red-lipped smile off her face. "You act like you have a choice in the matter," she said. "But the fact is, you don't have a choice. You either comply, or die. It's simple, actually."

I mulled it over for a moment. I didn't actually want to help Trinity, but she was right, I didn't have much choice in the matter in my current state. One misstep and I'd be tossed into the Gates of Doom. If I pretended like I might help them, perhaps they'd loosen their grip on me and I'd have a little playing room—a chance to regain the upper hand.

"Alright," I nodded. "I'll help you, but on one condition."

Rosa scoffed. "You know, Miss Croft, you're being terribly picky for a woman on the verge of death."

I ignored her comment. I was so sick of being called 'Miss Croft' like some sort of noblewoman. "Don't kill Nathan. Don't even touch him."

She narrowed her eyelids and pursed her lips. "Fine," she said, finally. "We won't lay a hand on him… for now. Not until the Jewel is in our possession. Then, after we release you both, we'll see if you survive. The choice is yours."

I smirked, thinking about all the times I'd narrowly escaped death, but still managed to be the last one standing—I had the scars to show for it. We'll see who survives when I'm through with you lot, I thought confidently.

"Hmpf," was all Rosa said before she pulled out her radio. She pressed the button and spoke into it, using various codenames and shortened words. She was signaling for the rest of her team to ease up on Nathan, and I could tell she was not happy about it in the slightest. "All right," she said sternly. "He's is in the clear—for now." She put up her hand, informing the driver to stop. "We'll rest here. Pitch the tent. We leave again at 05:00."

I sat, still tied tight to the handlebar, and watched as Rosa and her men got out of the transport to settle into their tents and sleeping bags. Rosa turned and smiled just before she retired to her tent and uttered, "sleep tight, Miss Croft. Don't let the bugs bite."


	13. Chapter 13

I sat slumped over in the transport seat, still feeling slightly defeated at having been captured so easily. I should have known better, I repeated over and over in my head. _I should have seen this coming_.

One of my weaknesses is that I tend to get caught up in details of the past, blaming myself for things that I might not even have had any control over. Some call it obsessing, I call it dwelling. I dwell on what I could have and should have done differently in situations that end badly. I come to conclusions on how I can better prepare myself next time, and use that to my advantage whenever I come across similar situations. And yet, I found myself in my current situation—one that could have easily been avoided if I'd just been a little more cautious. I wanted to blame the exhaustion for my poor judgement, but I always ended up blaming only myself. I was tied up, I had no weapons, and Nate and I were separated. Again. _What a bang-up job you've done this time, Lara._

I decided that was enough self-pity for a while and that it was time to carry on. "Keep moving forward," as Roth would have reminded me. _Err, it's a bit hard to keep moving forward when you're tied up, Roth._ "Best get to untying then," he would have countered.

I gave a few more tugs at my restraints, hoping they'd somehow miraculously come lose, but my efforts were in vain. Trinity knew me. They knew my tricks. They'd stopped taking chances long ago. The upside to being stuck like this was that I had plenty of time to think; time to ponder what my next steps might be. In my current state, I was fully prepared to go along with Rosa's plan to help her find the Jewel—or rather, I was prepared to pretend that I was going to help her. I had no intention of leading them to the Jewel, but perhaps I could get them close and then pull the old bait-and-switch. They couldn't possibly be that gullible, I thought, but perhaps they're desperate enough to try.

Another tug at the restraints for good measure. Nothing. I wondered why I even bothered. At this rate, I decided it would be more beneficial to catch a bit of rest than to waste more energy trying to break loose—sleep deprivation was catching up to me quickly, and I knew I'd need as much energy as possible for the coming hours. I closed my eyes and let my head gradually fall forward. Though sitting with my hands tied in front of me wasn't the most ideal sleeping position (and I knew my neck kill me later), my body easily succumbed to exhaustion, and I was asleep within seconds.

"Lara," my father sighed and closed his journal as I came sneaking into his office, hoping to get a glimpse of what he was working on. "What did I tell you about interrupting?"

'Lord Richard Croft' read the placard that sat on the large burgundy desk. A small green lamp gave off just enough light to illuminate the desk's surface—all other parts of the room were dark and barely visible. Dad removed his glasses and lay them gently on top of his leather journal. He rubbed his eyes, a signal that even I knew he'd been working far too long and needed a break.

"I know, I know," I said, disappointedly. "But I just thought you might need a rest. Maybe come outside and play? It's so nice outside, look!" I ran over to the window and heaved the heavy glass open with as much strength as an eleven-year-old could muster. I pointed out toward the grounds of Croft Manor as a cool autumn breeze fluttered inside, rustling some of dad's papers gently. "We could ride the quad bike around, or maybe have a go on the obstacle course? Bet you can't beat my time!"

Dad crossed his arms and looked down at his desk. "Not now, Lara," he said flatly. "I'm sorry, but… I've got a lot of work to catch up on."

I frowned and closed the window gently, the breeze cutting out suddenly. The papers returned to their stillness. "But you're always working," I said softly. I turned around and started to walk toward the door that led back into the foyer.

"Lara!" my father called to me before I left. I stopped and pivoted back around to face him. "Do you know what? Come over here and have a seat with me."

My face lit up with excitement. I giggled and hurried over, then hopped onto dad's big leather chair as he made room for me. He put one hand on my shoulder, and with the other, he opened his journal for me to see what was inside. When he revealed his work, my mouth dropped open in awe.

"Wow!" I gasped as he revealed photographs and drawings of gorgeous vistas, filled with lush foliage and beautiful, ornate temple architecture. "Is that a real place, dad?"

He chuckled. "It's a real place, Lara."

"Where?" I asked as my eyes examined every detail, every inch of the pages open before me.

"Very far from here, off the coast of Thailand," he explained, pointing to a picture of a map of Asia that was pasted onto one of the pages. "I had the chance to visit recently with Roth."

"And you didn't take me?" I protested. "But it looks amazing!"

"It is rather amazing, but also dangerous. I couldn't put you in that sort of danger. Your old man here had trouble enough keeping himself alive," he said with a laugh. "Perhaps one day you'll go there. Perhaps you'll get farther than Roth and I."

"What do you mean?" I questioned. "What's there?"

"Bhogavati," he said, turning the page to reveal sketches of lizard-like creatures. "They said it's the underground city of the Naga… or, lizard people, I suppose one might say."

"I want to see the lizard people!" I said, bouncing with excitement.

Dad chuckled, closing his journal. He picked me up and set me back down on the floor. "The world is full of so many amazing, untold secrets, Lara. Someone must discover them. Perhaps that someone will be you." He gently tapped his index finger to my nose.

"Once I become an archaeologist like you, I can discover _all_ the secrets," I smiled with a few missing teeth.

"You can do whatever you set your mind to, Lara. But remember, there are people who would not hesitate use power for their own personal gain. Think about what could be done for the world if that power was used for good instead."

I nodded.

"Ahem!" My father and I looked over at the doorway to the study where Winston, our butler, was watching curiously. "That was a wonderful story, sir, but if I may interrupt, it's time for tea."

"Of course, Winston," dad said. "Go on, Lara. I'll see you in a bit."

I hugged him, then hurried over to Winston to follow him to the dining room. "Thank you, father!"

"Oh, and Winston? Chamomile? And a Jaffa Cake, please," father called.

"And _two_ Jaffa Cakes for Lara!" I giggled.

With a deep inhale, I was brought back to consciousness. I shook my head to get my fringe out of my face, but without the help of my hands, my hair would not cooperate. My eyes burned, more so than before, and my cheek tickled. It took me a moment to realize that a tear had dripped down my face. I shrugged one shoulder up to my face to wipe it off.

 _Get it together, girl. It's been over a decade now._

As with comrades I lost on Yamatai, dreams about father were common. They increased in frequency during times of stress or crisis, but they always seemed to act as guidance or condolence. Though he'd been gone for years, it never got easier reliving moments with him; seeing his face so vividly in my mind.

I didn't have much time to think about this dream, though, as a sharp, stinging sensation surged through my right thigh. I winced in pain, instinctively shaking my leg to try to remove the source of the sting. _What the hell?_ I almost gasped at the pang, but stifled all sound upon remembering that Rosa and her armed Trinity guards were mere feet away from me. A new sensation took hold—one that felt like someone was gently tapping their fingers all over the skin of my lower thigh and calves. I wondered if I'd just been sitting for too long and my legs were going numb—no, I'd recognize that feeling. This was something different. I shook my leg again, ridding my leg of the sensation, but then came the sound of light thumping on the floor of the transport. My heartrate increased and I began to panic. I lifted my foot and moved it over slightly, then brought it down firmly. _Crunch!_

 _So, Rosa wasn't joking about the bugs. Wonderful._

I panicked a little more. I had no way to defend myself; no hands to brush these bastards off me. I yanked at my restraints again in another attempt to free myself. I should have known that wouldn't work. The spot on my thigh where I'd felt a sting just moments ago was now turning into a slight itch. I could feel the insects crawling up both legs now, and I shook them in a desperate attempt to get them off. It was no use—they kept climbing no matter how many times they fell. I began stomping again, trying to kill as many of them as possible while remaining quiet enough not to wake my captors. The slight itch was now growing increasingly unbearable, and I squirmed at the feeling. I had no way to scratch the itch and no way to brush the insects off. They began stinging again, once on my calf, again on my bicep, and another just at the base of my neck. I shrugged my shoulders and arched my back, hoping to knock them off. It worked—a couple fell behind my back and onto the seat. I stood up and sat back down, crunching a few of them under my weight. They were crawling along my arms and toward my hands that were bound to the bar in front of me. I writhed in agony—the stinging pain turning into itch relegated me to a state of extreme discomfort. It was unexplainably difficult to remain silent and try to defend myself when I felt as though I was being eaten alive. I desperately pulled at my bindings again, and hope filled my core as I heard a soft ripping sound. _They must be biting not only me, but the bindings too._ One tug, two tugs, three tugs… My hands were free!

I knew this would be my only chance to escape. Before jumping out of the transport, I quickly flicked on the headlights so I could see where I was going. I knew this would alert Rosa and her men, so I had to move fast.

I began at a sprint straight ahead, following the glow farther into the cavern. The headlights showed me what I couldn't see this entire time: swarms of insects crawling along the floor and walls of the cavern. I shuddered and brushed off several more that still clung to me, and with my hands finally free, itched my sores where I'd been stung—the relief that scratching those itches brought was immense. _Poisonous bastards._ I ran as fast as I could, and even faster when I heard frantic unzipping behind me.

"Croft!" a guttural shriek echoed from behind me. I smirked. The satisfaction of pissing off Rosa was too great. While I relished in her anger, I knew I'd have to work even harder to stay alive now. She would forget about trying to work with Nate and I—she'd only want us dead. I couldn't wait to surprise her yet again when that time came.

I heard the transport engine turn over, so I pushed myself to run even faster. The sound was faint, but grew louder every second. They were gaining on me. I had no choice but to keep following the single path the cavern offered, but I knew I must be reaching an opening soon—a soft red glow up ahead signaled a change of scenery.

Within seconds the transport was behind me, and the men wasted no time firing their weapons. Just as they began firing, I rounded a corner to the left, and instantly I was face-to-face with the giant rope bridge suspended above an immense pit of fire and lava. I slowed my pace, trying to argue with myself internally over whether I should run across or not. I knew it'd be crazy, the bridge being thousands of years old, but I had no other option. It was either cross the bridge or fling myself into the fire. I chose the former.

I ran full speed ahead out onto the bridge, its rickety rope suspension not offering much in the way of reassurance. Thank god for modern safety codes, I thought. I looked to my left: I was even closer to the giant stone face of the Idol Mara than before, the flame in its eye still burning just as bright. As I looked into its eyes, a giant beam of green energy blasted from the swirling flame, making contact with the bridge's rope suspension mere feet in front of me. I let out a yell and stumbled, grabbing the side of the bridge to stabilize myself. My eyes went wide as I watched a dozen of the bridge's wooden planks careen into the pit of fire, burning up instantly on contact.

"Oh shit," I said aloud.

I turned around and saw the transport round the corner, racing at full speed toward the bridge. Still grasping the side of the bridge, I raised one hand and yelled "Stop!"

Rosa didn't listen. She was at the wheel, a dastardly look spread on her face. She slowed the transport as she reached the bridge, and began inching it out onto the wooden planks.

"Stop!" I yelled again. She continued to drive forward. "It can't hold the weight!" I called to her.

"So be it!" Rosa yelled back. "We had a deal, Lara, and you abused our trust. We no longer have a use for you."

I let out a desperate, panicked groan and began stepping backward away from the oncoming transport, still grasping the rope alongside the bridge for support. I turned back around where more wooden planks were falling into the pit, then back to the transport. The wood cracked and splintered under the weight of the vehicle, the bridge threatening to give way at any moment. Not 5 feet was left between the gap in the planks and myself; the transport was just feet away from me on the opposite side.

 _Crash!_

Another green laser bolted from Mara's eye and hit directly below the transport. The bridge broke in two, the ropes of the bridge snapping and flying upward from the force of the split. The half of the bridge with the transport began to fall toward the pit of flames. Without thinking, I whipped around and took off at a sprint toward the other half of the bridge, which was falling toward the ledge on the opposite side. I took a massive leap over the gap, the heat of the flames searing my boots, and grasped onto anything I could when my hands reached the wooden planks on the other side. I clawed at the wood, desperate to climb up and away from the fire. I groaned loudly, each attempt to pull myself upward resulting in a plank falling away. My only other option was to grab hold of the rope on the side and use that to pull myself upward to where the bridge was attached. I wrapped my hands around it, and with a boost from my feet, began squirming my way up toward the ledge. After several moments of exertion, my hand finally reached the rock ledge at the top.

I grasped the ledge. The ledge crumbled. I fell toward the flames.

My heart dropped, and I forced my eyes shut as I prepared to be burnt alive. I stopped falling. I opened my eyes hesitantly and looked up.

"Nate!" I breathed a sigh of relief as he began pulling me up toward safety.

"You can't die that easily!"


End file.
